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Ottawa Senators' goalie Craig Anderson makes a glove save against the Montreal Canadiens during the second period of their NHL hockey game in Montreal January 14, 2012.Reuters

Still unable to hold his stick, Ottawa Senators goaltender Craig Anderson says he's not sure when the finger he cut while preparing a meal last week will be healed enough for him to return to the net.

Anderson required surgery to repair a severed tendon in the pinky on his right hand, which he uses to hold his stick.

"It's hard to say ... obviously the timeline is wide open right now," Anderson told reporters Thursday. "All I can do right now is make sure I stay in shape. I'm able to go out there and skate with my gear on. The main thing right now is keeping my legs, keeping everything strong, so when I do have a chance to come back, I'm physically ready to go."

Anderson wouldn't reveal any details about the incident that led to the injury, but said from the moment it happened, he knew it was serious and required immediate attention.

"My main concern was just to get the help I needed right away and call the right people and get the right people involved right away to make sure the road to recovery happened as soon as possible," Anderson said.

He is anxious to return, but wants to ensure he doesn't rush anything and risk re-injury.

"I've got to stay positive," he said. "All I can do is cheer on my teammates and continue to work on myself to get better so when I am able to come back I can just fit in and continue the way we were playing."

Despite Anderson's absence, the Senators have gone 2-1 in their last three games.

Robin Lehner will make his third consecutive start when the Chicago Blackhawks visit Scotiabank Place on Friday night.

Lehner is coming off a 1-0 shutout of the Bruins and will face Ray Emery, who is making his first appearance at Scotiabank Place since having his contract bought out by the Senators in 2008.

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