Zdeno Chara returned to the ice this week after sustaining an undisclosed upper body injury in a Sept. 24 exhibition game against the New York Rangers. But he's been skating alone, before his teammates take the ice.

Asked about his progress at media day on Thursday, Chara said, ''I skated today.'' Asked if he was able to shoot pucks yet, Chara repeated, ''I skated today.''

Chara said he can't put a timetable on his return as he tries to recover from an undisclosed injury.

''Today was better than it was yesterday,'' he said. ''If it keeps improving, we'll see how it's going to be next week.''