Great news today out of Abbotsford as top Canucks forward prospect Vasily Podkolzin, out with an injury since October 25, has resumed skating in a red non-contact jersey.

Podkolzin, 22, appeared to sustain a serious injury as a result of a violent check by Colorado Eagles defenceman Keaton Middleton during Abbotsford’s 5–2 victory at Abbotsford Centre on October 25.

As CanucksArmy‘s Cody Severtson reported back on the day of the incident, Podkolzin appeared to convulse repeatedly while lying on the ice in the Canucks’ defensive zone. He was rushed off the ice on a stretcher and taken to a local hospital, where he posted an encouraging update to social media that night.

Now, as Abbotsford News‘ Ben Lypka reported on Wednesday, Podkolzin has returned to practice with the team exactly two weeks after the incident against Colorado.

Before he went on the injured list, Podkolzin was in the midst of arguably his most dominant stretch as a Canucks prospect. In six games with Abbotsford to begin the year, Podkolzin had racked up five goals and seven points while seemingly beginning to develop into a lethal one-timer option on the power play.

The Canucks originally selected Podkolzin with the No. 10 overall pick back in the 2019 NHL Draft. The Moscow, Russia product came over from the KHL after the 2020–21 season and made his NHL debut with Vancouver in 2021–22, racking up 14 goals and 26 points in 79 games during his rookie campaign.

Podkolzin split the 2022–23 season between Vancouver and Abbotsford, managing to collect 18 points in 28 games with the AHL Canucks after his demotion. Vancouver assigned Podkolzin to the AHL once again to begin the 2023–24 season.

Through 118 career NHL games with the Canucks, Podkolzin has collected 18 goals, 33 points, and 35 penalty minutes. It remains to be seen when he’ll return to action in Abbotsford, which will host a pair of games against the Henderson Silver Knights this weekend.