Head coach Lindy Ruff stated that Samuelsson (lower body) could return to practice Wednesday, per Joe Yerdon of Bleacher Report.
Samuelsson suffered his lower-body injury early in the preseason, but he appears to be ahead of schedule in his recovery, given his initial timetable for return of week-to-week. The 26-year-old blueliner had a breakout season in 2025-26, where he posted 13 goals, 41 points, 109 shots on net, 132 hits and 154 blocked shots across 78 regular-season contests. While he might take a step back in the goal-scoring department in 2026-27, he remains a well-rounded defensemen that is a valuable player to have in category-based fantasy formats. If he can log full practice ahead of his eligible return date from IR, Samuelsson might only miss a handful of games to start the upcoming season.