I tried to replace a strut, now the steering knuckle won't reach it

Like the title says, I took the old strut out and let the steering knuckle/brake assembly hang and did not think to restrain it while I was putting the new shock in. Now, the steering knuckle won't budge enough to go back into the new stut. It seems like the CV shaft is disengaged/pulled out, but when I turn the hub on that side, with the car in gear and both wheels raised in the front, it makes the other side turn also. Doesn't that mean that the splines and everything are engaged? I tried all amounts of pulling, pushing, wiggling, turning the hub back and forth and no luck. At this point, I'm ready to pull everything apart and remove the CV shaft to make sure its not pulled apart internally inside the boots. Any suggestions are greatly welcome.