Cam Ward (illness) will return to the net Thursday against the Penguins, Chantel McCabe of FOX Sports Carolinas reports.

Ward (illness) will return to the net Thursday against the Penguins, Chantel McCabe of FOX Sports Carolinas reports.

Analysis:

Ward sat out the last five games in favor of Anton Khudobin while battling the flu. The illness never prevented Ward from serving as the backup goalie, but the Hurricanes obviously preferred not to press him into duty while he was less than 100 percent healthy. The Hurricanes had been employing a rough timeshare in goal prior to Ward's absence, and that figures to remain the case yet again, even after Khudobin turned in a handful of quality outings his last few times out. No matter who gets the call on a given night, both Ward and Khudobin will remain low-upside options due to the lack of offensive support they typically receive.