MONTREAL — A report late Wednesday suggested that injured Ottawa Senators Jason Spezza could need more time than expected to return from his back disc surgery and could still be out for another month.

Spezza had returned to light skating in recent weeks — away from his teammates — and appeared to be on track to get back into the lineup, perhaps before the end of March.

However, the report by RDS’ Renaud Lavoie suggests that Spezza is dealing with “some stiffness” in his back, slowing his recovery.

The recovery from back disc surgery is typically in the six-to-eight week range. Spezza is currently in week six, but if he’s sidelined for another four weeks, he wouldn’t be ready until perhaps the final two weeks of the season.

Senators officials had no immediate comment on the RDS report.