ST. LOUIS (AP) - Forward David Perron has rejoined the St. Louis Blues more than 10 months after he was knocked out of hockey by a concussion.
Perron missed 72 games last season after a mid-ice check from the Sharks' Joe Thornton on Nov. 4 that resulted in a two-game suspension for the San Jose center.
"I feel pretty good and it's good to be back here in the rink," Perron said Monday. "I think it's where I belong. There's going to be a few symptoms once in a while but it's something that's a process."
There's no timetable for his return.
"It's exciting to have his name back on the board, but we know that he's not close to playing," general manager Doug Armstrong said. "He's not someone that I'm expecting to be on our roster in the near future."
Perron has spent months working on his recovery, meeting with specialists in Vancouver and Boston. There's no timetable for him to actually play.
"With this type of injury, David's going to tell us where he's at," Armstrong said. "We're going to push him, but only to the point where he's comfortable."
Perron began light exercises and light skating 3-4 weeks ago because his symptoms have been relatively smaller and more infrequent.
"At some point, you haven't worked out for so long that you've got to see how you feel when you get back into it," Perron said. "We're just at the beginning of that. You've got to listen to your body and listen to the people around you."
Armstrong said Perron was at "square one" with a baseline test set sometime this week before the player can begin serious training.
Perron said it's been helpful talking with teammate Andy McDonald, who has had a few concussions.
"With this type of injury, David's going to tell us where he's at," Armstrong said. "We're going to push him, but only to the point where he's comfortable."
McDonald said there was no "secret recipe" that Perron can follow.
"You just try and reassure him that what he's going through is kind of normal and that he's going to get better, he's going to get back on the ice and everything is going to be OK," McDonald said. "I think toward the end, in my experience, there is a little bit of pushing through it."