Ben Birnell

MondayNov25,2019at9:59AM

The Utica Comets are getting a short visit from an NHL veteran.

On Monday, French forward Antoine Roussel was assigned to the Comets on a conditioning loan from the parent Vancouver Canucks as he continues to work back from a knee injury.

Roussel, who turned 30 years old on Thursday, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee last March while playing with Vancouver. Hes been on injured reserve since the start of the season, but has been recently skating with the Canucks recently. Hes traveled with the Canucks during their road trip that brought them to the East Coast in the last few days.

Because he's still on the NHL's injured reserve Roussels conditioning loan can't exceed six days or three games as he prepares to return to the Vancouver lineup, according to the collective bargaining agreement. That means Roussel could suit up for the Comets in Wednesdays home game against the Syracuse Crunch as well as on a weekend trip to Toronto.

Roussel, who signed with Vancouver in July 2018, has played 478 NHL games mostly with Dallas. Roussel had a career-best 31 points with the Canucks last season before he was injured in a collision with the New York Rangers Brendan Lemieux.

Roussel also has AHL experience with Texas, Chicago and Providence though the last of his 146 games happened in 2013. The winger, known for his agitating style, amassed 36 points and 372 penalty minutes during his time in the AHL.

It is the second time this season that Vancouver has utilized a conditioning stint for a player. Defenseman Oscar Fantenberg spent two games with the Comets earlier this month.

The Comets, who are coming off a 4-2 win over Laval on Saturday, have struggled at times in November going 3-7-1-0 with two games remaining in the month. The Comets are 11-7-1-0 overall -- their second-best start to a season in the team's history -- and are in fourth place in the North Division going into Wednesday's game against Syracuse, which trails Utica by a point.

More:

Roussel assigned to Comets on conditioning loan - Utica Observer Dispatch