Hurricanes player ready to play again after multiple sclerosis diagnosis

Bryan Bickell’s much-anticipated return from battling multiple sclerosis this season is near.

The Carolina Hurricanes sent Bickell, 30, down to the American Hockey League on a conditioning stint on Thursday. He’ll play in the Charlotte Checkers’ six-game homestand to get back in playing rhythm.

“I’ve been through injuries before,” Bickell said. “But I’m sure it’s just like riding a bike. Just hop back on there and keep [it] going. It’s going to take a game or two to find the timing and rhythm and game again.

“But it’s just like riding a bike,” Bickell said with a smile.

The Hurricanes forward hasn’t played since he and the team announced his multiple sclerosis diagnosis on Nov. 11. Bickell sought treatment after feeling dizzy and suffering numbness in his right leg and arm.

Multiple sclerosis is a central nervous system disease that targets the brain and spinal cord, “disrupting the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body,” according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. There’s no known cause and no known cure. The leading idea is that genetics is involved with its manifestation.

Life expectancy for those diagnosed with multiple sclerosis is five to 10 years less than those not diagnosed with the disease.

Bickell has been taking treatments of Tysabri, an intravenous drug required once a month to manage his symptoms. He told NHL.com that he’s trying to keep a good outlook.

”I go once a month to get my treatment,” Bickell said. “Stay there for a couple hours and feel all charged up. It’s something I have to do for I don’t know how long. Hopefully they can find a cure in the next 10 years.

“But it’s part of my life, and we’re working through it. Physically it’s been tough. Taking off that much time … we’ve been working hard every day to get back. Definitely mentally it’s a tough thing to go through. For me to be positive is the biggest thing.”

Rejoining his teammates will probably help with that.

The Hurricanes acquired Bickell as part of a Chicago Blackhawks salary dump in the offseason. Bickell appeared in just seven games with Carolina before the diagnosis sidelined him. Bickell won the Stanley Cup with Chicago in 2013 and 2015.