Gary Mackay-Steven is expected to make a quicker return from injury than was originally anticipated by Hearts.
The winger has had surgery on a broken hand sustained against Dundee United at the beginning of the month.
He was sent to a specialist but the diagnosis was better than expected.
Mackay-Steven's recovery time has been estimated at between a week and 10 days.
While he may still miss Hearts' match against Livingston on Saturday, he should be ready to return to training at the start of next week.
That would mean he could feature in the clash with Ross County next weekend.
The Jam Tarts are also hoping that others will make a return against Livi.
They were without a host of names in the victory over St Mirren in the Scottish Cup, including John Souttar, Michael Smith, Alex Cochrane, Cammy Devlin and Josh Ginnelly.
Hearts won the tie 4-2, with Beni Baningime, Peter Haring, Aaron McEneff and Ellis Simms grabbing goals.
