"My progress has been better the last week or two," said Blueger, who has been practicing with full contact, and took line rushes this afternoon.
He has yet to play this season after getting hurt during training camp. Blueger said it's been hard for him not to get discouraged, calling his upper-body ailment the most frustrating injury he's ever dealt with in his career.
Particularly from a mental perspective, because not only has it been months since he played a real game - Blueger just wants to be doing what he can to help the team, especially as they battle to end their 0-5-1 winless stretch.
"I know it's only been 10-11 games, but it feels like half the season's gone by," he said. "You just want to be out there playing, obviously, and it's getting tough to watch as far as being in the stands and just feeling helpless. Time is going by fast, and it feels like with each passing day, you're missing more and more, so it's definitely been a grind mentally."
Blueger, who has anchored Pittsburgh's fourth line and adds to their center depth behind Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Jeff Carter, contributes in so many areas - including on faceoffs, the penalty kill and just the overall defensive side of the puck.
"He's just a conscientious player. We can play him against anybody in any situation. That's the type of trust that we have with him," Mike Sullivan said.
His return will be incredibly welcomed by his teammates and coaches, whenever it may be. And when Blueger does slot into the lineup for his season debut, he said it will be important for him to try and rely on his instincts.
"I think any time you're coming back from injury, you may battle some self-doubt," he said. "There's not that much contact in practice, things like that. So I think it is a bit of a challenge, and I think it's important to have a good start, kind of get your feet underneath you and just feel comfortable, play, and not think."
OTHER INJURY NOTES
The Penguins practiced on Friday at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex after a day off on Thursday. Here are the updates.
A few of the forwards were absent from practice: Jake Guentzel missed today's session due to illness, while Josh Archibald had a maintenance day. Jeff Carter, who has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury, remains day-to-day. All other expected players were present.
