The Capitals gave their full support to Lundqvist in a statement, saying that they “are supportive of Henrik’s decision to step away from hockey at this time due to his heart condition. Our players’ health is of the utmost importance, and we stand behind Henrik’s decision. We want to wish him and his family all the best moving forward.”

''I'm very confident. We've got all the pieces. We've got the goaltending. We've got the defensemen. We have the offensive power,'' Maroon said.

''Cam and Adam had good years last year,'' Murray said. ''Who else did in that group of guys? The young guys, they're a couple-of-year pros now. It's time. And you take another look: If we can just get our special teams, just get them in the middle of the pack, where does that put you?''Tennessee Titans for NHL Face Masks

The Sharks, meanwhile, are unable to open training camp in San Jose due to Santa Clara county's ban on contact sports, which runs through at least Jan. 8. On Sunday, Sharks GM Doug Wilson said his team would begin training camp in Scottsdale, Arizona -- at the Coyotes' training facility -- and the plans remain fluid after that.

Muckler's final NHL role was a senior adviser position with the Phoenix Coyotes in September 2008, working alongside then-coach Wayne Gretzky, who had a close relationship with Muckler from their time in Edmonton.

"I see the excitement in him both being back with his teammates, working and having fun, and I see the excitement in his teammates with him being back," Vigneault said. "In this situation, probably very nervous today, anxious to get going, hasn't played in a while. But I think for him and for our team, this was a very positive day, a step forward."

''Our expectations are that he's a great teammate and he works his butt off every shift. We know he's going to have a special talent, a special skill level, and we're obviously excited about that, but we want him to conduct himself like we ask of anybody,'' coach Dean Evason said.Miami Dolphins for NHL Face Masks