Matt Cooke (hip) practiced again Friday and appears optimistic about his chances of returning to the lineup Saturday against the Predators, John Shipley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Cooke (hip) practiced again Friday and appears optimistic about his chances of returning to the lineup Saturday against the Predators, John Shipley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Analysis:

Cooke will test out his hip injury for what he hopes will be a final time Saturday morning, and if all goes well, he'll likely be activated from IR. The bottom-six agitator has missed the past 22 games with the injury, putting a blemish on what had been a productive season to that point. He had an impressive six points through his first eight games, though that level of offense is probably not sustainable given that his career best for points in a season is just 42.