There have been positive signs of late that the recovery of Capitals forward Carl Hagelin has been going well. He was on the bench for the pregame ceremony honoring Nicklas Backstrom for 1,000 points. He was also at the Wizards game on Tuesday with Tom Wilson and Trevor van Riemsdyk.

Hagelin suffered a serious eye injury during practice in March, but can be seen without wearing any patches or bandages over his eye, a promising sign considering the severity of the injury.

Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette confirmed that Hagelin is progressing well.

“We see him every once in a while. Spirits are good, he’s doing good," Laviolette said.

As good as Hagelin may look and as well as he is progressing, however, that is not an indication that he will be returning to the team any time soon.

Hagelin had surgery on the eye the same day as he suffered the injury and was expected to have a second surgery later that week. On top of that, he is expected to undergo several more surgeries before a comeback could even be possible.

So while Hagelin is headed in the right direction, he still remains far from a return.

“He’s moving," Laviolette said. "A long road ahead of him. So I don’t know the exact details of it, but he’s got more work to do.”