from Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch,

There are days, David Clarkson said, where he plays with his three young kids or skates with a local high school team, and his back gives him a glimmer of hope that an NHL comeback is possible.

But then there are days — like the one just three weeks ago — when the 32-year-old feels so far away from pulling a Blue Jackets jersey over his head.

"I literally couldn't get out of bed," Clarkson said. "I couldn't move. My wife had to call the docs and I laid there and waited for the muscle relaxers to kick in before I could start the day."

Clarkson hasn't been heard from or seen in the Blue Jackets dressing room since late last season. He showed up quietly a week before training camp in September, asked to take a physical he knew he'd fail, and then got out of the way when the Blue Jackets' healthy players arrived.

In a nearly one-hour sit-down with The Dispatch, Clarkson's eyes welled more than a few times on both ends of the emotional spectrum.

continued