Savard, however, isn’t ready for game action just yet.

“I feel great out there,’’ said Savard after the skate, the first one he’s participated in since aggravating his foot injury last month. “You’ve got to put your time in, though, like every guy does. They got to skate a couple times. I’d love to be playing here tonight, especially in Atlanta. But I’m going to have to wait a bit.’’

Savard reported no pain in his left foot after the session. But he is only days removed from taking off the protective boot he had worn while the foot healed. The former Thrasher missed his 14th straight game last night and will most likely not be available until Monday against St. Louis or Wednesday against Minnesota.

“The last thing you need is a groin injury and a guy out for two weeks after we’ve been waiting a month for him,’’ said coach Claude Julien. “It’s not cautious. It’s just smart.

“Any player who’s been out for a month wants to come back. I think he really wants to help the team.

“He also understands that it doesn’t make any sense to anybody, whether it’s trainers, coaches, or upper management. You’ve got a guy take his boot off one day, then two days later he’s in your lineup after he’s been out for a month? There’s too much risk involved.’’

But that all went out the window when he came down with a bout of food poisoning Tuesday night.

“Oh, it wasn’t good,’’ Lucic said with a smile. “I woke up in the middle of the night with a little food poisoning. Just a 24-hour thing. Had to get through that.’’

Because of the illness - Lucic cited salad, steak, and sushi as possible suspects - he didn’t fly on the team charter. Instead, he flew commercial to Atlanta yesterday and touched down shortly after noon. Lucic didn’t arrive in time for the morning skate, but he felt good enough to get back in the lineup, skating at left wing alongside Steve Begin and Byron Bitz.

Lucic skated 14 shifts for 14:01 of ice time, recording two shots and one hit.

“Just the timing and all that type of stuff, it was good,’’ he said. “I got a few chances. I had a tip there in the second that went wide. I felt pretty good. It can only get better.’’

“I think that was probably one of the best shifts ever in junior hockey,’’ said Kane. “Three unreal hits, then I think it was [Jordan] Bendfeld he fought. It really got the crowd going. It really got us going. It was a pretty special shift.’’

Kane and Lucic were teammates on the Vancouver Giants squad that won the 2006-07 Memorial Cup. Early in the championship match against Medicine Hat, Lucic threw three tooth-rattling checks, then scrapped with Bendfeld to complete the shift.

While Lucic was an established Western Hockey League star by then, Kane was just starting his junior career.

Over the following two seasons, Kane scored 72 goals for Vancouver. He was the fourth pick of the 2009 draft, and has found a home in Atlanta as a first-year pro. He has six goals and five assists in 18 games.