Flyers' Timonen joins his teammates on the ice at morning skate

BY THE TIME Kimmo Timonen hurried to the rink from the doctor's office, his teammates were already on the ice for practice.

He didn't have much time to think - let alone scramble to throw on his equipment to join them for yesterday's morning skate, which sometimes doesn't last more than 20 minutes.

When he put his head down and stepped on the ice in his gray jersey, the rest of the Flyers stopped and turned. They tapped their sticks on the ice, welcoming Timonen back to the ice for his first practice with teammates since last April. He was diagnosed with a blood disorder and multiple clots in his lungs and leg.

"That was special," Timonen said. "Everybody knew what the situation was, and the chances of coming back were really slim. They probably appreciated the effort I put in for a chance to hopefully play a game in the next couple of weeks.

"It takes an effort to get to this point. I was in here every morning [working out] for sometimes 2 hours. That's what guys appreciate. The way the guys did it on the ice, that was cool."

The six-time All-Star, who turns 40 a month from today, called the pregame skate a "soft landing." It wasn't a full practice, but a step up from the individual skating he'd done over the last week - sometimes firing pucks on Ron Hextall's youngest son, Jeff, who is a goaltender for a local junior team.

Timonen estimated he needs approximately 7 to 10 more days to be ready to play, up from the 4 or 5 days of practice he originally guessed.

"It takes time," Timonen said. "It's not like it's going to come back in a day or two."

In his appointment early yesterday morning, Timonen received final clearance for contact. He will be with the Flyers full time now, traveling on road trips, and participating in every practice.

"I'm cleared now," Timonen said. "They won't let me go out there if I can't get hit. I went to visit a doctor this morning and he said: 'Go get 'em.' "

He could return to the lineup anywhere from next Tuesday in Carolina, to Thursday in Toronto, to Feb. 28 against the Rangers. That would give him a maximum of three games, or a minimum of one, for opposing scouts to make a judgment on him before the March 2 trade deadline.

Timonen's main motivation to return is to win a Stanley Cup - something that in all likelihood he won't have a chance to do with the Flyers. By the end of next week, the Flyers will have a much better idea where they sit in the playoff race.

"I felt like I was probably 50 years old," Timonen said. "It's not anything to do with getting in shape or anything like that. I feel like I'm in decent shape. It's the timing and guys skating by you and next to you, just to get that feeling back that guys are out there and you have to make a play if guys are on you.

"It's when you get into the corner and you feel like someone is coming after you. Those are things you can't do by yourself."

Flyers coach Craig Berube stopped practice to acknowledge Timonen's presence.

"I think it shows a lot of courage and determination by him," Berube said. "I think everybody's very happy Kimmo is back on the ice."

By the time the second period rolled around last night, Michael Raffl was back on the Flyers' top line with Claude Giroux and Jake Voracek.

Brayden Schenn spent the final two periods on a unit with R.J. Umberger and Ryan White.

Giroux and Voracek have averaged more shot attempts - the best current indicator of possession - with Raffl as a linemate this season than Schenn.

The simple Schenn-for-Raffl swap took place because Craig Berube explained before the game that he liked Wayne Simmonds with Matt Read and Sean Couturier. Read entered the night with points in four consecutive games.

"I think [Simmonds] just makes them more offensive," Berube said. "I've talked to them about being more aggressive rather than just using your head all the time. It's not going to hurt [their] defensive responsibilities. You've just got to skate and attack more."

Last night, Schenn moved back to center for the first time since Giroux was injured in early January. Before the game, Berube said he liked Schenn on the wing because he's a "big, strong guy'' and "good on the walls.'' A lack of production from the top line changed that - and briefly the game's momentum in the second period.

"You look at the production and it's not where we want it to be or where he wants it to be,'' Berube said of Schenn, "but I do still believe it's going to get there.''

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