Teuvo Teravainen took part in his first full practice Friday after being out since March 4 because of a concussion.
There is no timeline for the return of the forward, who has missed 26 of the past 27 games.
Coach Rod Brind'Amour said it was a positive sign for Teravainen after he had been skating prior to practices and morning skates for approximately the past two weeks.
"Well, I don't want to jinx it, that's for sure," Brind'Amour said Friday. "But yeah, I mean, that's a big good sign that he's actually with us, practicing in a regular jersey or whatever. No restrictions, I guess is the best way to put it.
"I'd love to be able to say it's close. It's up to him. He's got to feel confident in his abilities to go out and play the way he can. So we'll just kind of ... like I said, the positive thing is he's out there with us. So that's a lot better than it was. So I think that's a good step in the right direction."
Prior to playing 14:30 against the Detroit Red Wings on March 4, Teravainen missed the previous seven games. He has scored nine points (two goals, seven assists) in 13 games this season.
Carolina (28-10-4) is tied for first place with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the eight-team Discover Central Division. The top four teams qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.