Maurice says Little is skating, Perreault nearing a return

WINNIPEG - Winnipeg Jets head coach Paul Maurice had a quick update on Bryan Little on Friday, as the forward continues to recover from a perforated ear drum and the symptoms that resulted after taking a shot off the ear back on November 5.
Little has taken the next step in his recovery, as he's skating away from the team as often as possible.
"Bryan is intermittent when we put him on. We'll put him on for a day, keep him off, then just kind of check on that," said Maurice. "He's still healing."

There is a bit of good news on that healing front, as Maurice says at the moment doctors don't feel surgery will be necessary.
"The healing is going the way they want it to," said Maurice. "They're going to leave it for now."
PERREAULT GETTING CLOSER
Mathieu Perreault is nearing a return to the Jets line-up.
He's missed the last four games with concussion symptoms, but got through a skate with Little prior to Friday's full team morning skate.
"The next (step) would be full contact with the group tomorrow," Maurice said of Perreault. "If he can get through that, then we'll start thinking about it. But he'd have to get through that feeling really good.
"He's in the time now that we'd start considering him. He was probably pushing for the Montreal game. When he didn't play in that, for me, that takes him out of this game. So I didn't consider him for today. We'll go forward there."