The San Jose Sharks will have captain Logan Couture back in their lineup for the first time this season when they take on the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday, head coach David Quinn announced, according to NBC Sports' Sheng Peng.

Couture has been sidelined by a lower-body injury, but the specifics of the ailment have been kept under wraps. He was initially ruled week-to-week in September with the hopes that he'd be ready for San Jose's season opener, but he ended up missing the Sharks' first 45 games of the campaign.

The 34-year-old told reporters in December that he feared his career was over as a result of his injury.

"That was the toughest part, the unknown," Couture explained. "The waking up one day and feeling good, then waking up the next day and feeling really crappy. Just not knowing there was no light at the end of the tunnel. There was no timeline set, just kind of a week-by-week, day-by-day thing."

Here's how the Sharks looked at practice on Friday:

Quinn also announced that forward Nico Sturm will return on Saturday. Sturm has missed the last 16 games with an abdominal injury.

Couture has spent his entire 14-year NHL career with the Sharks after being drafted ninth overall by the organization in 2007. He places fifth in franchise history in games played (927), third in goals (323), and fourth in points (700).

The Ontario native ranked second on San Jose with 67 points (27 goals, 40 assists) in 82 games last season, trailing just Erik Karlsson.

The Sharks have had a rough go this campaign and sit in last place in the league with a 10-31-4 record.

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