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When Nate Schmidt sustained an ankle injury during offseason training in August, there was a collective gasp from Golden Knights fans.
Oh no!
Not him!
Which considering Schmidt's skill set, which could very well see him become one of the Golden Knights' top defensemen this season, would have been understandable. Nobody in the organization would wanted to have seen Schmidt miss any length of time.
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Checking in from City National Arena on Thursday, Schmidt cleared the air about his status. That while his ankle injury that he sustained performing hurdles during an August training session was no big deal, and that he's pretty much ready to go.

"The trainers here did a great job," Schmidt said. "I'm pretty close to 100 percent."
Schmidt has skated at City National Arena each of the past three days.
A light skate the first day, heavier sessions on days No. 2 and 3, and no issues.

When Golden Knights veterans have their first official on-ice session of training camp on Friday, Schmidt is expected to be ready to participate.
Although head coach Gerard Gallant said that all lineup decisions related to Sunday's preseason opener against the Canucks in Vancouver are still to be determined.