Clarke MacArthur has unfinished business.
The Ottawa Senators winger had hoped to make a healthy return this season, only to suffer a head injury in training camp following a nasty hit by farmhand Patrick Sieloff.
The veteran winger has missed the entire season and was limited to just four contests last year as he continues to deal with post-concussion issues.
No doubt his return would be a boost to the Senators, a team seeking offensive depth. Ottawa has scored just 59 goals on the season, the seventh-worst tally in the league.
"I want to play for sure," MacArthur told Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen. "Things are slowly getting better. We've got to do the tests but if I'm medically cleared, I'm for sure playing."
While MacArthur understands the risks after suffering four concussions in the past year-and-a-half, that hasn't stopped his plans for a return to the ice. Retirement certainly isn't on MacArthur's mind, as has been the path of many others who have dealt with post-concussion symptoms.
"The way things kind of ended, I don't want it to end like that. I feel like I can still play," MacArthur added. "I haven't been able to fulfil anything in this contract I've signed, and that's a kind of cloud over top of me. You want to come back and earn your money and do what you're supposed to do. That's something that has been bugging me for some time here so I definitely want to get back out there and do whatever I can."
MacArthur joined the Senators as a free agent in 2014, scoring 55 points in his first season with the club. He is signed through the 2019-20 season and carries a $4.65-million AAV.
In the meantime, MacArthur continues to skate and hopes to lose his 'no-contact' jersey soon as he continues to progress toward a return. MacArthur has circled early January as his target date to return to game action.
"After the bye week (from Jan. 2 to Jan. 7) would be ideal for me," MacArthur said. "To get back in it full swing. That's what I’m shooting for. I'm sure when I get back it's going to be an adjustment early. But I feel when I get in real game shape and back at it, I have full confidence that I'll be able to get back to what I was before."
Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.