Preds' Pekka Rinne in Milwaukee for conditioning stint

The daytime high temperature in Milwaukee, Wisconsin was hovering just north of zero on Thursday, but to Pekka Rinne, it may as well have been paradise.

The Nashville Predators' goaltender is in town on a conditioning stint with the hometown American Hockey League's Admirals after a four month layoff on the Predators' injured reserved list with a bacterial infection stemming from a surgical procedure on his hip, and the team felt he could use a couple of starts in Milwaukee before exposing him to NHL snipers.

You see, Rinne is royalty in these parts, last season being named the greatest Admiral in the team's 35-year history, earning 81 wins, a 2.54 goals against average and a .911 save percentage in the three seasons he spent in the largest city in Wisconsin, named to two AHL All Star Games and leading the Admirals to the 2006 Calder Cup finals...

...so in a city where beer is king, Rinne probably won't have to dig in his pockets to pay for one - ever.

The Predators do not have a time table for Rinne's return and don't want to push it with him after he had to endure two surgeries on the same hip in five months - one to repair an injury and one to eradicate an e-coli infection, the former to correct deterioration in the joint, which is a fairly common procedure among hockey players.

But the latter, an arthroscopic procedure to flush the infection from his body with saline and antibiotics, turned into a nightmare of being attached continuously to IV antibiotics - so really, just being free of that thing probably feels like being paroled, no matter the surroundings.

But Milwaukee it is, back where the Finnish netminder's career began on American soil - and though the itinerary is ambiguous beyond Friday and Sunday, when Rinne will be between the pipes for the Admirals, the fluid nature of the rehab due to the fact that Rinne himself will dictate when he is ready to return to Nashville.

“I feel like I’m really close to game shape,” Rinne said upon arrival in Milwaukee. “I think it’s a final couple of games before I jump on the ice with the Nashville team.”

“In practice, it’s hard to have game-like moments and drills. It’s hard to duplicate that traffic, and that game speed and intensity,” Rinne continued, then added, “For a goalie it’s all about your timing, special teams, penalty kill - which is such a big part of the game for a goalie. It’s just things like that. Getting used to it again.”

Rinne only started practicing with the team when it returned from its 10-day Olympic break on February 19th.  "He’s still got game action he’s got to get into." Predator's coach Barry Trotz said earlier in the week. "He’s got to get back into Pekka Rinne form."

What better place to get into form than where it all started?

Islanders' John Tavares escapes surgery; GM still unhappy

“It’s a joke. They want all the benefits from NHL players in Olympics and don’t want to pay when our best player gets hurt.” - New York Islanders' GM Garth Snow

So Garth, don't hold back, how do you really feel about NHL players participating in the Olympics?

Snow let those words off the chain after being made aware that his team captain, John Tavares, had torn his MCL in a collision with Latavian defenseman Arturs Kulda in Sochi, ending both his season and, essentially, any chance the Islanders had of making a run down the stretch to steal a playoff spot.

The Islanders are a distant 12 points behind current Eastern Conference eighth seed Detroit Red Wings and had lost seven of eight games headed into the Olympic break, but that makes no difference to Snow, and he is far from the only NHL executive that dislikes players under contract playing in the games.

“It wouldn’t matter if we were 10 points up on a playoff spot or 10 points out,” Snow grumbled. “We lost our best player and he wasn’t playing for us.”

The 23-year-old Tavares took a clean hip check from Kulda in group play, his knee smashed between Kulda and the side dashers and immediately went down grasping at the injured limb, an MRI revealing a partially torn MCL and meniscus - the partial tear sparing the centerman surgery, as rest and rehabilitation indicated for full healing.

For his part, Tavares responded to Snow's criticism of the International Ice Hockey Federation and Olympic Committee in disagreement.

Tavares on Olympics: " I think it’s important for us to play... I love playing for my country and if I got the call again, I would." #Isles
— Arthur Staple (@StapeNewsday) February 25, 2014

Then qualified his statement by saying he understands why Snow is so upset:

Tavares on Snow's reaction: "You understand why teams are concerned about injuries. I know he cares a lot about the Islanders and so do I."
— Arthur Staple (@StapeNewsday) February 25, 2014

Snow also was rebuffed by the NHL Players' association, who reacted to his comments by informing him that the Islanders are covered as far as salary is concerned by the insurance coverage paid for by the International Olympic Committee, and also for all medical procedures that stem as a result of an injury during international play.

Snow's reaction?  “Are the IIHF or IOC going to reimburse our season ticket holders now?” 

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/islanders-john-tavares-escapes-surgery.html#.Uw5WXIUcq58

Hand fully healed, Winnipeg's Evander Kane cleared to play

These are exciting times for the Winnipeg Jets.

Since bench boss Paul Maurice took over for Claude Noel in mid-January, the Jets' have gone from doormats to just two points out of the Western Conference playoff race, and are heading into the stretch run as healthy as they've been all season - and that includes having Evander Kane back on the ice.

In and out of the lineup since slicing his hand open during an altercation with Tampa Bay's Eric Brewer just before Maurice took the reigns, Kane, who should be in the lineup on Thursday night when the Jets host the Phoenix Coyotes, doesn't regret coming back at Brewer, who gave him a hard cross check in the back to instigate the fight.

"I don't fight a lot," Kane said upon returning to practice. "Fighting is a part of the game. It's a good part of the game. It's a necessary part of the game. You have to have it to control the game. Those type of things, they happen." then, addressing the specific incident, "He gave me a shot in the back. I'm not going to back down, let's put it that way."

Physical for being a smaller winger, Kane has 107 hits to his credit and 50 penalty minutes in 42 games played - but with his game being a speedy play maker, his 29 points on 15 goals and 14 dimes is down a bit from where he'd like, but much of the decrease in numbers can be attributed to his intermittent participation.

Kane isn't the only injured player that has been cleared for duty, but he is the only one that Maurice is clearing to play - veteran centerman Jim Slater and winger Matt Halischuk got the go ahead from team docs at the same time as Kane, but Maurice isn't one for making wholesale changes, particularly when his team is on a serious roll.

"I have to clear them, too, and I'm still watching them in practice and have to watch them play," Maurice said after Tuesday's practice. "My first reaction is that I liked the way our hockey team was playing prior to the break, so those players get the nod early and then we'll make adjustments as we go."

Slater has been out since undergoing a sports hernia operation in October and Halischuk has been on the shelf for over two months with a broken arm - and both understand the way Maurice works.

"You've definitely got to earn your way back off the IR," Halischuk said. "I just look at this as an opportunity to come in and see what I can do. It's exciting to be part of the group here and going forward, we're all looking to have a strong playoff push here."

 http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/hand-fully-healed-winnipegs-evander.html#.Uw49kYUcq58

Rangers' Derek Dorsett should be back to pestering folks Thursday

New York Rangers' Derek Dorsett has been cleared for contact by team physicians, and being back to annoying the opposition isn't far behind.

Dorsett's fibula snapped like a twig when he took a puck to the outside of his left skate while attempting to block a shot off the stick off Pittsburgh Penguins' Olli Maatta on January 3rd and was expected to miss four-to-six weeks - a time period in which, coincidentally, the Rangers have played their best hockey of the season.

The Rangers' 67 points have them sitting at the 5th seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race by a slim margin, and are in a much better place than they were when Dorsett went down, going 12-4-1 in the seventeen games that he's missed, including winning five out of six going into the Olympic break.

Playing an average of 11:24 of ice time per game, Dorsett has marked the scoresheet with two goals and three helpers, but that's not really his game.  The 27-year-old right winger has spent 103 minutes in the penalty box, nearly half of those for fighting.

Dorsett has annoyed and frustrated his opponents into nine fights according to the excellent website Hockeyfights.com, coming out on the short end of those more often than not - but accomplishing his goal of taking a skilled player from the other team to the sin bin with him.

A decision as to whether Dorsett will be in Thursday's lineup against the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks will be made after Tuesday's practice.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/rangers-derek-dorsett-should-be-back-to.html#.Uw4vjoUcq58

Preds' Pekka Rinne on verge of return

Facing one the NHL's toughest stretch schedules, the Nashville Predators could use all the help that they can get - particularly if it comes in the form of goaltender Pekka Rinne.

Rinne was granted clearance to kick his workout in practice into overdrive in hopes that he will be cleared to play at some point this week - something that seemed like a pipe dream or an exorbitant delusion just a month and a half ago.

“I feel like it’s coming,” Rinne said on Monday after receiving the good news from team docs. “I’m not too nervous anymore. I feel really optimistic about it that I’m going to get the go-ahead this week at some point, and that’s all I care about."

The Predators were playing their best hockey of the season heading into the break, and not even enduring a three-game winless streak can hide the fact that their offense had found it's groove, and the return of their number one goaltender could very well make all the difference between making the playoffs and going golfing instead.

“In practice, we’ve done everything we possibly can to kind of simulate game action and whatever situations you might face." Rinne said with his famous big grin. "The next step is playing games. Hopefully that’s really soon here.”

The Predators' really can't afford to bring him back too quickly, as he hasn't played since early October when he had surgery to remove a pocket of infection from a hip that he had surgically repaired over the summer - but no one can blame coach Barry Trotz for being excited over his rapid progress since being cleared to practice a few weeks ago.

"Whenever it happens, it happens" Trotz said in regard to a return date. "But it feels a lot better than it did a month ago or six weeks ago. He’s still got game action he’s got to get into. He’s got to get back into Pekka Rinne form."

“Even this summer, where he had the hip surgery and made it through training camp, he really didn’t probably play like himself until the seventh or eighth game of the year for him.” Trotz cautioned, then broke into his excited tone again. “You can see when he makes a save - that’s a Pekka Rinne save right there because it stopped a sure goal,” he said. “That excites you.”

Rinne can't wait for a packed arena to get excited to see him make a save, which may happen as early as this weekend.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/preds-pekka-rinne-on-verge-of-return.html

Bolts' Steven Stamkos sets March 6th return date

The Steven Stamkos saga continues...

A full month later than his original target date, Stamkos looks back on how much pressure he felt in trying to keep to his overly-optimistic return date from a broken tibia and realized that he was the only person applying the pressure...

...wanting so badly to play for his homeland Canada in the Sochi Olympics consumed him and motivated him, but in the end the broken bone dictated that he stay home.

"I think now it was kind of a relief for that whole thing to be over and done with," Stamkos said of trying to get back in time for the Olympics. "Just to get all that stuff out of the way and to focus on one thing and that's getting back and playing for Tampa."

Which he will do, as Stamkos is now eyeing a March 6th return date, the Lightning's first game back from a four-game road trip that starts Thursday night in Nashville - a road trip in which he will not be accompanying his teammates on as he sticks to his daily routine to make this more reasonable target date.

"It did feel good (Feb. 5), but it feels even better now," Stamkos offered. "Maybe I wasn't as far along as I thought, knowing how much better it has felt now that I have kept working on it and taking a couple of days off. It's just going to continually get better and that's positive knowing it's doing that."

Tampa Bay bench boss Jon Cooper knows all to well what was going through Stamkos' brain as the original target date approached, a date that would have had him back in the lineup in time to get a couple of games worth of ice time in before taking off for Russia - Cooper wasn't buying it but tried to be supportive of his efforts.

"I think if you were to ask him if he could play right now he would definitely say he could," Cooper said on Tuesday. "There were a lot of times (before the Olympic break) he said he was OK but you could tell he was feeling the effects of some pain. I don't see that anymore. Time is healing the wound."

The final hurdle for Stamkos is a meeting with his team of physicians on March 5th, where they will review the latest set of xrays and hopefully give him a clean bill of health.

 http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/bolts-steven-stamkos-sets-march-6th.html

Sabres' get back trio of injured players

The Buffalo Sabres started the 2013/14 season playing so badly that they didn't even qualify as doormats of the National Hockey League - and even though their record still reeks of bottom feeding, the improvement in effort and style since interim coach Ted Nolan took over the reigns at the end of November is obvious and apparent...

...but with only 38 points in 57 games, the Sabres are not going to make the playoffs.  That said, Nolan's record since assuming command speaks for itself, leading Buffalo to 11 of their 15 wins and going 10-14-7 since a tumultuous 1-5-0 turnover period between Ron Rolston and Nolan.

Of all the issues facing this Sabres' team going forward - abysmal offense being the main culprit - health is no longer one of them.

Moulson will undoubtedly be with another team very soon

Left Winger Matt Moulson, centerman Cody McCormick and defenseman Tyler Myers all made the most of their Olympic break to heal their various wounds - Moulson's ribs, McCormick's finger and Meyer's leg ailment - and were back on the ice when the Sabres' returned from the layoff.

“They’re all feeling good, which is great,” Nolan said after returning from Sochi where he served as bench boss to the Latvian team that gave Team Canada a run for their money. “One good thing about the Olympics is it gave all the guys that got injured time to heal.”

Moulson, of course, is trade bait as he will be an unrestricted free agent at season's end - and with the trade deadline looming less than a week away, getting him back on the ice healthy could prove a boon to the Sabres in their attempt to acquire pieces and/or draft picks to rebuild their team with.

The Sabres' first couple of practices have been without their two top goalies, Ryan Miller and Jhonas Enroth, who were still in Russia playing in the medal round, so the team borrowed a couple of college kids for their less-than-imposing offense to take target practice on and Nolan suggested that whoever between Miller and Enroth got the most sleep on the way back from Sochi would be between the pipes when Buffalo hosts Carolina on Tuesday night.

Last place teams can fly by the seat of their pants like that.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/sabres-get-back-trio-of-injured-players.html#.Uwvb94Ucq58

Sharks' Raffi Torres, Logan Couture anticipating Thursday return

Rookie Phenom Tomas Hertl won't be back on the ice for the San Jose Sharks anytime soon, but he's the lone holdover on the list of injured fins as forward Raffi Torres makes his 2013/14 debut after tearing an ACL in the preseason.

Torres has been rehabbing for the past five months and has recently begun full contact practices.

"I didn't think I'd be able to get back this fast because my last time it took over a year to feel really good," Torres said Thursday, referring to his previous stint on the IR with the same injury as a member of the Edmonton Oilers in 2007. "We're only at five months and I feel great."

Torres tore the ACL in his left knee in an awkward collision with Anaheim Duck forward Emerson Etem on September 20th and had surgery shortly thereafter.

Also on back on the practice ice for San Jose are centerman Logan Couture and wingers Tyler Kennedy and Matt Nieto - Couture returning from a 16 game absence with a hand injury while Kennedy and Nieto were nursing leg and foot injuries respectively...

...and once all of the Sharks' Olympians are back in the fold - which will be in Wednesday's skate before taking on the Flyers in Philadelphia - San Jose will be rolling three dangerous lines in their quest to overtake the Ducks in the Pacific Division, but it may take a little time before Torres and the rest are at full speed.

"What comes last is always the timing — the hands, the read and react, game situations," Sharks' bench boss Todd McLellan said this weekend. "And that's still going to take some time."

Despite all of the injuries, San Jose is a mere seven points behind pace-setter Anaheim - winning three of four before the break and facing a schedule that isn't exactly overwhelming down the stretch, coupled with the Ducks being mired in a funk and losing their aura of home ice invincibility of late, the Sharks have to like their chances.

"We could be putting a group of players on the ice together for the first time this season," McLellan smiled. "That can be a real good thing. It will also have to be a patient thing for our group. They are going to experience that level that they haven't been at yet. But we do have about six weeks to put it all together before we get to the real time of the year."

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/sharks-raffi-torres-logan-couture.html#.UwvdPoUcq58

Canuck's Henrik Sedin healthy after skipping Sochi games

Henrik Sedin made the right decision - at least as far as the Vancouver Canucks and their fans are concerned.

Sedin turned down the honor of representing his homeland of Sweden in the Sochi Olympics in favor of resting and allowing his ribs to heal - getting his body right to help his team crawl out of a seven-game losing streak for a stretch run toward the NHL Playoffs, and the decision has paid off as Sedin has participated in every practice since Thursday.

Coach John Tortorella shut his captain down for the last two games before the Olympic break after he proved ineffective in trying to play through the pain that had sidelined him for six games after suffering a rib injury January 16th at Phoenix, and though Tortorella preferred that the slick centerman not play in the Olympic games, he left the decision up to Sedin.

A decision befitting a team captain, and a decision worthy of respect from both his peers and the fans.

"It was a tough decision, like I said, but it would have felt awful toward my teammates and myself and Team Sweden to go over there and not be at 100 percent."

So while Sedin healed, his twin brother Daniel and abrasive defenseman Alex Edler carried the staff and won Silver for Sweden, goaltender Roberto Luongo and defenseman Dan Hamhuis won gold medals with Team Canada and blue liner Yannick Weber and centerman Ryan Kessler skated for the Swiss and the United States respectively.

"I was very pleased with the practice and how I felt," Sedin said on Friday after practicing for the first time in two weeks. "Everything is going the way I wanted it to go, so that's good."

Despite all of the turmoil associated with the Canucks this season, and sporting a league-worst 4-13-2 since the ball dropped on the new year, they are still just one point shy of the eighth and final seed in the Western Conference playoffs and are facing a middling schedule down the stretch.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/canucks-henrik-sedin-healthy-after.html#.UwvcTYUcq58

Blue Jackets' Fedor Tyutin on shelf with bum ankle

As the Sochi Winter Games wrap up, we are learning more and more about the casualties incurred by top National Hockey League players - the latest of which is an ankle injury to the Columbus Blue Jackets' defenseman Fedor Tyutin.

Losing Tyutin is a cruel hit to the Jackets, a streaky team that used the month of January to climb right into the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race and were looking like they were finally going to be healthy for a brutal stretch run, but the ankle injury leaves a hole on the blue line across from Jack Johnson on the first pairing.

"You want everybody to come back healthy, but we've got to be able to deal with it" Columbus assistant coach Craig Hartsburg said. "It's a crucial time not to have him, but others are going to have to step up.  As a group, they're going to have to be better."

It is speculated that Tyutin will be out for a period of two to three weeks.

Dalton Prout is the favorite to be called up from AHL Springfield to take Tyutin's spot on the roster while he's on the mend.  Prout was up with the 'Jackets for 27 games before a myriad of injuries forced him back down to the affiliate - but he's healthy now and last season's surprisingly solid work is needed for the stretch run if Columbus is going to make the post-season.

"He's probably ready to come back and be the player that we saw last season" Hartsburg replied when questioned about Prout.

Columbus sits one point behind the Detroit Red Wings for the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race, and has a less-than-imposing stretch schedule, so the Blue Jackets are primed to get on another hot streak like the eight straight they pulled out of their hat in January...

...losing three straight after that, then winning three, then losing...you get the point. 

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/blue-jackets-fedor-tyutin-on-shelf-with.html

Caps' Nicklas Backstrom banned from gold medal match; Swedes lose to Canada

“It sucks. It’s like kindergarten, I can not ice the best team today. We should have the right conditions to compete with Canada and we didn’t have that today.” - Swedish Coach Par Marts

Kindergarten?  If Marts thinks that losing his best playmaker to testing positive for a banned substance from a medication that he has used for seven years with no incident is childish, wait until he has time to set back and think about the timing of the entire incident, and he may come up with a more adult metaphor.

Under a cloak of secrecy and fabricated tales of migraine headaches, Washington capitals' centerman Nicklas Backstrom was taken from the Swedish team's locker room by International Ice Hockey Federation officials prior to Sunday's gold medal match between Sweden and Canada and banned from playing in the match.

Backstrom was tested on Friday and according to reports from several media outlets,  he was on the Swedish team's lineup sheets just before the start of the match, then was scratched at the last possible moment, citing a debilitating migraine headache...

...but then during the course of the game, news leaked that the NHLPA had informed Yahoo Sports that Backstrom had actually been scratched from Sweden's lineup due to a positive test for pseudoephedrine, a banned substance by the IOC and the World Anti-Doping Federation and a common ingredient in allergy medications.

“I got the message two hours before the game, that there was something wrong. Then I knew when the warmups are starting that he wasn’t going to play," Marts said after the game that Canada easily won, 3-0.

Marts was naturally incensed and Backstrom distraught, obviously feeling that he needed to defend himself in some manner, as his tweet from Sochi bears out:

Nicklas Backstrom: "I have absolutely nothing to hide. I've had allergy problems for several years."
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) February 23, 2014

"We know it's because of an allergy medicine he has been using for seven years," Swedish team press officer Björn Folin told SportExpressen.ce, a Swedish news website - and if you think the news was taken as a shock around the NHL, wait until you see the front page of SportExpressen...

...obviously, this story is just starting, stand by for updates.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/caps-nicklas-backstrom-banned-from-gold.html#.UwoxsIUcq58

USA's Paul Martin suffers hand injury; to be evaluated in Pittsburgh

The ambiguity surrounding the health status of Team USA's Paul Martin had the defenseman going from a healthy scratch to being laid low with an illness to the latest report of a fractured bone in his hand - but until the physicians for the Pittsburgh Penguins get a chance to evaluate him, any confirmation on the severity of the injury should be considered premature.

The latest report is that Martin has a hand injury, suffered during the quarterfinal game against the Czech Republic, is currently wearing a splint and may eventually need a cast.

"You know, I grew up playing for my country, always wanting to play for my country," Martin said after experiencing the Olympics for the first time during group play last week. "When you miss a couple Olympics and you're older, you appreciate it that much more. In that moment, it was emotional, definitely. I was out there on the ice skating around, just thinking, 'I'm on the ice for my first Olympic game. It's happening.'"

And it ended in a nightmare, for both Martin and Team USA, who lost to Finland in Saturday's Bronze medal match and leaves Sochi having not experienced the podium.

Although this isn't a serious blow to the Penguins' playoff positioning - they are currently running away with the NHL's Metropolitan Division - it is a demoralizing turn of events to Martin, who worked hard to return to the ice in time to play in the Olympic games alongside teammate Brooks Orpik, losing 23 games to a fractured tibia suffered in Boston in late November.

He returned to the lineup on January 22nd against Montreal and played in nine games before heading out to Sochi. In 33 games played this season for Pittsburgh, Martin has recorded two goals and ten helpers and has been a big-time minute muncher, averaging over 25 minutes per game on the ice.

Initial reports had Martin lost for the season, but the Penguins medical team hasn't had a chance to examine him, so speculation as to the severity of the injury, as well as attempting to determine a time frame for a return from the injury is fruitless at this point.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/usas-paul-martin-suffers-hand-injury-to.html#.Uwks2YUcq58

Mike Green heads list of Caps' players returning from injury

Adam Oates will have his moving target back on the ice when the Washington Capitals return from the Olympic break.

Defenseman Mike Green, he of immense offensive skill and glass jaw, and therefore a much sought-after target by the opposition, has been cleared for contact after passing his neuropsychological test - the last step on the concussion protocol.  Green has been sidelined since doing a face plant on the end board glass at Columbus on January 30th.

"I feel good. The break couldn't come at a better time," Green said. "It's just a matter of skating here, I didn't skate much before."

Green sat out the final five games before the Olympic break with concussion-like symptoms, though the Caps went 3-1-1 in those games and has closed to within two points of the floundering Detroit Red Wings for the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

“I would say that all the guys need the rest,” Oates commented on Friday. “But for guys who are a little banged up for sure, get a chance to heal, maybe do some weight work and get stronger.”

Included on the list of banged up players with Green are the hot-headed centerman Mikhail Grabovski, who has missed eight straight since injuring an ankle against New Jersey, whom Oates said "seems fine", and defenseman Jack Hillen, who will not be ready anytime soon since breaking his right tibial plateau in the second game of the season.

“I need to be stronger and be ready for defenseman that can play behind like this and find a different play, spot where nobody can hurt me and I can score goals.” Grabovski said before the break, also relaying the fact that he wishes to get a shot or two in on Devils' defenseman Bryce Salvador, whom Grabovski blames for his injury.

“I want to come back and I want to play against this D who make this hit to me. It was just so brutal,” said the Belarusian, who will get his chance on April 4th at New Jersey.

The only real question with the Capitals when they return to the ice is whether or not star forward Alex Ovechkin will be in the lineup, or if he will even be in the United States at that point as he is still in Sochi at his father's bedside while the elder Ovechkin recovers from a heart attack suffered last Sunday.

General Manager George McPhee reported that he told Ovechkin to "stay as long as necessary with your dad." and that he's not banking on the league's leading goal scorer to be back in time for Thursday's game at Florida. 

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/mike-green-heads-list-of-caps-players.html#.UwkeOoUcq58

Flames' tough guy Brian McGrattan tangles with end boards; status uncertain

Getting hit in the face is nothing new to Calgary Flames' enforcer Brian McGrattan, but usually it's when he's squaring off against an opponent on the other team, and they rarely get the best of the heavyweight pugilist...

...but tangling with the end boards?  That's a different story.

McGrattan caught a rut during Flames' practice on Thursday and pulled a face plant right into the end boards, the dashers getting the best of the 6' 4", 235 pound right winger, knocking him woozy and leaving him prone on the ice for several moments while the cut man - er - trainers tended to him.

Reports from the practice stated that McGrattan "gingerly glided off" under his own power, but that he didn't look good.

“I guess from what the players and what Jacques Cloutier (assistant coach) told me, he kind of caught a rut and basically fell face-first into the boards." Flames bench boss Bob Hartley He was in pretty big pain, and, obviously, we’ll probably have a report for you guys Friday morning.”

There has been no further report on McGrattan, who has racked up 95 penalty minutes so far this season, almost all due to fighting and misconduct infractions.  According to the excellent website Hockeyfights.com , McGrattan has dropped gloves 10 times this season - winning each as voted for by the fans, adding a physical presence to a team in full rebuilding mode...

...but his most notable altercations this season occurred against the Vancouver Canucks, fighting Tom Sestito twice - and drawing misconduct penalties for extra-curriculars in each - and also for manhandling Canucks' coach John Tortorella in the tunnel leading to the Flames locker room after a full line brawl in mid-January as the fiery Vancouver head coach tried to confront Hartley during the first intermission.


A brawl that resulted in seven ejections and ended up costing Tortorella a 15 day suspension - but that's just an example of what McGrattan brings to the Flames.  An intense, hard-working fourth line enforcer who genuinely respects every player and every opponent, making him an ideal veteran presence for a young team in rebuilding mode.

Ducks' Nick Bonino set to return from IR

The Anaheim Ducks found out what life was like without Nick Bonino in their lineup last season, and they don't want history to repeat itself this season...

...so when Bonino went down wrist injury during the Ducks' win over Philadelphia in late January, coach Bruce Boudreau exercised caution, listing the team's third leading scorer on the team's Injured Reserved list and shutting him down for the final four games before the Olympic break.

A small sample size to be sure, but the results were eerily similar to last season's sub .500 funk when Bonino ripped up a hamstring playing soccer, Anaheim going 8-9-3 during his 20 game absence after a white-hot 17-3-3 start to their season - so when the Ducks went 1-3-0 during his brief stint on the list before the break, including being shut out twice, it seemed to be far from coincidental.

"We were at a distinct disadvantage when we lost him for six weeks last year" Boudreau said when announcing that he had placed Bonino on the IR. "He's not feeling really good.  We want to make sure he's better and there's four games before the Olympic break."

The 25-year-old centerman has already set career marks in just about every offensive category there is and is third in scoring on the Anaheim roster, finding twine 16 times while dishing out 24 dimes for 40 points in 56 games played.

In reality, Anaheim's dreadful performances in leading up to the break have been ongoing since mid-January, the Ducks following up a season-high eight-game winning streak by losing six of eleven - a funk made even more disturbing when considering that five of those loses were at home, where they had been invincible for the majority of the season...

...so obviously their issues range beyond Bonino's injury - but the good news is that Anaheim still sports the best record in all of hockey and face a cupcake schedule down the stretch.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/ducks-nick-bonino-set-to-return-from-ir.html#.UwjT2YUcq58

Avs' Alex Tanguay has hip surgery; done for season

The inevitable has finally occurred for Alex Tanguay, what was supposed to be the Colorado Avalanche left winger's triumphant return to the team that drafted him 16 years ago has turned into a nightmare of pain and disappointment.

Tanguay underwent surgery on his bothersome hip on Friday morning, ending his season and possibly his career - his 2013/14 campaign lasting all of 16 games before being felled by knee, groin and hip issues...

...and given that this will have been his second surgery on the hip on top of a protracted history of knee ailments and combined with age, one has to think that the possibility of his career being shortened drastically or even being over must be considered.

If so, his four goals and eleven assists scored this season will be the last of 253 goals and 520 assists in his productive NHL Career.  He also has 19 goals and 40 assists in 98 playoff games and helped the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup Championship in his second year in the league.

Taken twelfth overall in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft, Tanguay played six seasons with the Avalanche before being dealt off to Calgary where he enjoyed career numbers in  his first season, but clashed mightily with the coaching staff in his second year and requested a trade.  He spent a year in Montreal, then a year in Tampa Bay before resigning with the Flames once they made a coaching change and spent three years reestablishing himself as an offensive force.

The rebuilding Flames traded him back to Colorado this past offseason.

"I haven't had my best year yet in the NHL, I really feel that," Tanguay said upon his arrival after the trade last summer. "I have a big chip on my shoulder about that, I realize. I feel I can still perform, and I'm so happy to be back in Denver where I have so many great memories."

The excitement of being back on the Avalanche and being coached by ex-Avs' teammate Patrick Roy lasted all of 16 games, Roy sounding as if this might be it for the veteran.

"He's going to have surgery on his hip, but the reason why he is out is for the knee," Roy said after Thursday's practice. "The knee isn't doing better. I guess it's a mix of the hip and the knee." then adding, "In the back of our minds, we were hoping not, but at the same time with Alex in the lineup I think we are 15-1. He's an important player, but I think we did well without him."

The Avs have done well, their 79 points good for the fifth seed currently in the tough Western Conference, a full 15 points north of the cut off line with 24 games to go and only five points shy of the Blues and Blackhawks for the lead in the Central Division...

...and with two games remaining against each on top of a less-than-imposing stretch schedule, the Avalanche could very well make a lot of noise come playoff time - and though the Avalanche wish they could do so with Tanguay in the lineup, Roy hit the nail on the head when saying that they've gotten this far without him.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/avs-alex-tanguay-has-hip-surgery-done.html#.UwfTz4Ucq58

Caps' Alex Ovechkin remains by ailing father's side; no time set for return to U.S.

Alex Ovechkin gave everything he had to his country and his Russian teammates, playing as if he didn't know his father was in the hospital undergoing surgery - because he didn't know.

Mikhail Ovechkin suffered what is reported to be a heart attack on Sunday evening and underwent surgery almost immediately, but the family decided to keep the news from the Washington Capitals' star winger until after Ovechkin and his Russian team were finished with the Olympic tournament...

...which happened far too early for the team and for the country, but all of that took a distant back seat in importance once Ovechkin's family informed him of his father's condition.

Ovechkin and his father, Mikhail, before the Olympics began

“I’m sure his parents didn’t want him distracted, but family means everything,” Capitals' General Manager George McPhee said on Friday “So that’s where he stays until he’s ready to come back.”

McPhee is unaware of any time table for Ovechkin's return, not will he pressure the league's leading goal scorer to return to the United States, understanding the fragile emotional state that Ovechkin must be in and also aware of how he slumped coming out of the 2010 Olympics - so he says the team will take a wait-and-see approach.

“It’s certainly going to be a most difficult time in his life,” McPhee said. “The Olympics meant a great deal to him and his father’s sick, so this is not going to be easy for him. But when he comes back we expect he’ll give us everything he’s got as he always has.”

As for Mikhail, 62, he has been removed from Intensive care and is doing well, according to a tweet from Ovechkin:

Thanks to all for support. My dad going to be good and he see you all again !!!
— Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8) February 21, 2014

The Capitals will need an Ovechkin unfettered by distraction is they are to realize the playoffs when the NHL resumes it's schedule in the middle of next week, though McPhee is not expecting him to be back by that time. “We’ve told him to stay as long as necessary with your dad,” McPhee said.

The Capitals figure to be right in the thick of the playoff race as they stand a point back of the Detroit Red Wings for the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference, but face an absolutely brutal stretch run in which they will face 17 playoff teams in their final 23 games...

...including the Penguins, Flyers and Maple Leafs twice and the Bruins three times - not to mention the dreaded three-game roadie through California's "Murderer's Row" where they will face The Ducks, Kings and Sharks in a four-day span.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/caps-alex-ovechkin-remains-by-ailing.html#.UweytIUcq58

Penguins goalie Tomas Vokoun cleared to practice

The Pittsburgh Penguins could do a heck of a lot worse than having Tomas Vokoun backing up Marc-Andre Fleury between the pipes - the question is, will they?

Vokoun was cleared to return to action this week after a life-threatening bout with blood clots and has begun practicing with the team, but there are a couple of issues working against the 37-year-old netminder.  First, he's 37-years-old, which in goalie terms isn't necessarily time to put him out to pasture...

...but given the seriousness of the health scare he just went through and the fact that he has been on blood thinners for nearly a year and nowhere even close to the game suggests that he's going to need some time to get in "Goalie Shape" - to retrieve the peripheral vision, to regain the quick-twitch motor skills, to get the muscles properly accustomed to the pretzel-like twists that netminders typically get themselves into.

“My agenda is to practice and see how I feel and how it goes." Said Vokoun on Tuesday. "We’ll see. I’m trying to get back, see how I feel, making sure my health holds up. Obviously, being out for five months, you never know.”

The Penguins are in a sort of a quandary.  As it stands right now, Fleury is being backed up by rookie Jeff Zatkoff, who has impressed with a  9-2-1 record with a 2.64 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage - and Fleury seems to have recovered from melting down in last season's Stanley Cup Playoffs.

And although Fleury has bounced back and regained form to lead the National Hockey League in wins this season, the post-season is a whole different animal, and to have someone with big-game, post season experience like Vokoun behind Fleury could raise the confidence and comfort level of the team and their fans.

Vokoun took over for an overwhelmed Fleury in the playoffs last season and posted a 6-1 record in leading Pittsburgh to series victories over the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators before running into the full-steam-ahead Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference Finals, being swept by the Bruins who shut down the Penguins' powerful offensive attack and used their transition game to take target practice on the besieged veteran stopper.

The 2.25 goals against average yielded by Vokoun in that series would normally have been plenty good enough to find themselves playing for the Cup, but the Bruins Tuukka Rask yielded but two goals for the entire series - and no team is going to win by scoring a half a goal per game.

So Vokoun has some confidence going forward, and if he can get his skates under him, at the very least he gives coach Dan Bylsma some options to work with - not to mention a decision to make regarding a post-season roster, as he has the option to send Zatkoff back to the AHL.  He could also elect to go with three goalies.

Whatever Bylsma decides, Vokoun is under no delusions, knowing that his career has many more games behind it than ahead of it - but he also takes solace in the fact that the team wants him back.

"The team showed interest in me coming back. I’m still a paid player, under contract." Vokoun acknowledged. “It’s nicer for me, either way that it’s going to end up, if I didn’t finish my career in the stands and watching but instead finish as a player. I’m putting everything into it and trying to get in good shape and, hopefully, come back to playing.”

“If I don’t feel like I’ll be helping or I’m not where I need to be to play, I’m not going to try to get in the lineup and be a burden to the team,” Vokoun added, “It’s not easy, but I’ve played for a long time. As you get older, you realize how quickly the times goes past, and you miss hockey. It’s nice to be back and be part of the team, whatever my role is."

 http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/penguins-goalie-tomas-vokoun-cleared-to.html#.UweUZIUcq58

Trio of Red Wings ready to return from injury; Weiss to AHL on conditioning stint

Coming out of the Olympic break, the Detroit Red Wings are a revolving door - fortunately for them, there are more players on their way in than on their way out.

Amid fear that veteran winger Henrik Zetterberg will be lost for the season, the Red Wings have countered with news that forwards Johan Franzen and Stephen Weiss are ready to return from injury, as will defenseman Jakub Kindl - and when combined with the news that Pavel Datsyuk will soon return from Russia no worse for wear, the Red Wings are as healthy as they are going to get.

Franzen has been suffering from concussion-like symptoms while Weiss hasn't played for well over two months after having sports hernia surgery in early December.

“We were shooting for after this break to be ready to be available to play,” Weiss said on Thursday. “That’s obviously going to be up to the coaches whether or not they put me in the lineup, but that’s still the plan: to be ready and available for those first couple of games back.”

Weiss skated with the Plymouth Whalers - his Junior team - during the break, but a case of the flu cut down on his workload, so there will be a conditioning stint in store for him at the AHL level, Weiss reporting to the Red Wings' affiliate in Grand Rapids and will take the ice for them on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Red Wings assistant coaches also put Franzen and Kindl through a fast-paced workout and noticed nothing troubling.

“It was that type of skate where all we wanted to do was get their feet under them, get some activity again, nothing really competitive or combative,” assistant coach Tom Renney said. “We’ll crank it up a little more tomorrow and see how they do.”

Kindl is coming back from  from a sprained MCL, suffered just before the break.

“You watch how he’s doing with his pivots and sort of misdirection in terms of puck retrievals,” Renney said of Kindl. “He’s doing fine; I don’t think we’ve done anything to sort of exacerbate the problem. He would tell us if that was the case and we have not heard from him along those lines so I think everything’s fine.”

The Red Wings play their first game back from the break next Wednesday in Montreal.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/trio-of-red-wings-ready-to-return-from.html#.UwafR4Ucq58

Sojourning Datsyuk will return to U.S. on Tuesday; should be ready to play

Pavel Datsyuk is home.

No, not in Detroit where his Red Wings anxiously await his return to practice and to make them better - rather, home in Yekaterinburg where things make sense and the disappointment in being eliminated from the Olympic hockey tournament doesn't sting quite so much.

He'll be back in Hockeytown soon enough, but before the pressure of of helping the Red Wings into the playoffs and before the minor mending of fences between Pasha and his employers, there are a few days to cool his heels in his homeland that he feels deserved more than what they got from he and his Russian team. 

“There were great hopes placed on us, and we didn’t live up to them,” Datsyuk lamented, emotionless. "We can't score today. Hard to win if you not score. We not make enough traffic, we not shoot enough."

Half way around the world and under the weight of disappointment for Datsyuk and his shattered Olympic dreams, Detroit Red Wings' General manager Ken Holland also has to be breathing a sigh of relief as well.

Holland has been careful to say all the right things in regard to Datsyuk's decision to play for his homeland Russian team in the Olympic games despite groin and knee injuries that sidelined him for 14 games before the break for the Sochi games - so he's not going to offer up champagne and cigars now that his star centerman will have a full week to rest...

...but inside, just under the surface of his mask of genuine empathy, there has to be a place where silver linings exist that is smiling at the good fortune that Russia's upset loss to Finland on Wednesday has given his Red Wings.

"He's taken an opportunity to go home for a few days," Holland said of Datsyuk on Thursday. "I told him just to be on the ice Tuesday for practice. We certainly expect him to play Wednesday, but we'll see how he feels."

Thanks to no more wear and tear on the knee, he should be fine if his performance in the games are any indication - a superb effort with two goals and six points in five games - an effort that Holland took the opportunity to praise.

"I thought he had a tremendous Olympic tournament," Holland said. "I thought he played very very well. I know that he's been battling an injury going back to December. Now he's played five games here in short period of time. Hopefully, he'll be ready to play for us next week."

At issue, of course, was Datsyuk's insistence on playing for the Russian team in the Olympic games while Holland and coach Mike Babcock took turns publicly expressing thier anxiety in regard to the injury until he was already in Sochi - at which time they could do nothing but trust their star.

"With Pavel, he has been a warrior for us since he showed up in 2001," Holland said at the time. "I'm not sure where we'd be without him. He knows his body better than anybody, and I think he's earned the right to make the decision based on how his body feels."

Datsyuk experienced the rare honor of being able to defend his country's home ice, the honor of being the captain of the hockey team that played in front of his countrymen but, ultimately, he also experienced an agony in defeat that only those so honored will ever know.

There will be no more Olympic games in Russia in Datsyuk's career, perhaps no more Olympics anywhere for the 35-year-old - but there is a Stanley Cup still up for grabs and if Pasha can lead his Red Wings to the playoffs, anything can happen.

But it seems likely that he will have to lead them without good friend Henrik Zetterberg, who is perhaps done for the season after he, not Datsyuk, suffered the franchise altering injury in Sochi.  Detroit currently has a very tenuous grip on the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference playoff - tenuous because there are five teams within three points of them in the standings and that slim margin could evaporate before the Red Wings play at home next...

...visiting Montreal, Ottawa and New Jersey before playing their first post-games match at home on March 6th - so it is imperative that they hit the ice at full speed with all (healthy) hands on deck.

The good news is that Jakob Kindl, Stephen Weiss and Johna Franzen should all be recovered from thier pre-Olympics' injuries and back on the ice along with Datsyuk, who will have had a week off to do some soul-searching and to get that left knee rested and ready for the stretch run.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/sojourning-datsyuk-will-return-to-red.html#.UwaQIoUcq58

Tavares update: Islanders captain done for season with torn MCL

New York Islanders' centerman John Tavares reportedly has a torn Medial Collateral Ligament as well as a torn meniscus and will miss the remainder of the 2013/14 National Hockey league season.

Contrary to previous reports, Tavares will not be returning to the United States on Thursday, rather, he has been given permission by the Islanders to remain in Sochi through the end of the Olympic Games to participate in the medals presentation should the heavily favored Canadian team reach the podium.

A more complete evaluation of Tavares' knee will be undertaken upon his arrival from Russia, and the options available to him and the Islanders at that point range from rest to surgery, depending on the severity of the tears - regardless, his season is over, as are the chances of the Isles climbing back into playoff contention.

Whichever way that scenario unfolds, the captain should be ready for training camp.

"You feel for him as a friend, as a teammate and, quite honestly, as a Canadian," defenseman Travis Hamonic, Tavares' teammate on both the Canadian team and the Islanders said on Wednesday. "Johnny is one of the best players our country has and he was relied upon a lot for that team. He's given a lot of himself for Canada in a lot of tournaments. It's just terrible."

Tavares ranks third in the NHL in points with 66, his 24 goals and 42 helpers tops on the Islanders who are bringing up the rear in the Metropolitan Division with a paltry 52 points, a full 14 points behind current Eastern Conference eighth seed Detroit with 22 games to play.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/tavares-update-islanders-captain-done.html

Canada's John Tavares out of Sochi Games with knee injury; Isles to evaluate

And another one bites the dust.

No, Freddie Mercury isn't going to come crawling out of the ground to reprise Queen's rock classic, but when New York Islanders' captain John Tavares limped off the ice in the second period of Team Canada's narrow victory over Latvia on Wednesday in Sochi, it was just one more nail for Gary Bettman to drive into the coffin of the NHL's participation in future Olympic games.

The thing about Olympic games is that only the best and the brightest of athletes are chosen to participate, so any player that gets injured has serious repercussions for the NHL team that he plays for - and when you add Tavares' knee to the list of NHL stars who have gone down with injury in these games, Bettman has a pretty compelling case to nail that coffin shut.

And he won't have any trouble at all convincing the owners of the individual franchises, particularly those who now have players on the shelf due to injuries suffered in Russia.

The Islanders captain John Tavares suffered the injury taking a clean hip check from Latvia defenseman Arturs Kulda along the dashers low in the Canadian attacking zone while attempting to make a play on the puck, his left knee appearing to take the brunt of the impact.


Tavares went down immediately and slid along the dashers to the back boards, writhing in pain and the puck underneath him - play was stopped at once and Tavares was helped to the bench where he looked to be in obvious pain, then taken back to the room for evaluation.

"He's out for the tournament," coach Mike Babcock said. "He'll be re-examined by the New York Islanders people and I'm sure they'll have an announcement."

The Islanders hit the Olympic break as cold as any of the venues in Sochi, winners of just one of their last eight games, struggling to find any offensive rhythm at all - and if Tavares is out for any length of time they can forget about making any sort of run to get back into the playoff race despite their less than imposing schedule.

Tavares ranks third in the NHL in points with 66, his 24 goals and 42 helpers tops on the Islanders who are bringing up the rear in the Metropolitan Division with a paltry 52 points, a full 14 points behind current Eastern Conference eighth seed Detroit with 22 games to play.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/canadas-john-tavares-out-of-sochi-games.html#.UwV4PIUcq58

Lightning to evaluate Stamkos, two others for return to lineup

Tampa Bay Lightning fans have heard it before, but any time that coach Jon Cooper says that he expects young superstar Steven Stamkos back in the lineup, it offers them a glimmer of hope that this time it might actually come true.

But that's exactly the word coming out of Tampa, Cooper reportedly saying that he expects his 24-year-old centerman to be ready to go when his Lightning hit the trail for a four-game roadie starting in Nashville against the Predators next Thursday.

The Lightning are holding practice on Wednesday afternoon their first formal skate since the league suspended play for the Sochi Olympic games, but it is uncertain in what capacity Stamkos will be participating, if at all.

Steven Stamkos' timetable is still open-ended, Cooper said, though stated goal is for him to be ready for the Predators.
— Damian Cristodero (@LightningTimes) February 18, 2014

Same goes for injured winger Vatteri Filppula, who is rehabbing a broken ankle, and goalie Ben Bishop, who is reportedly dealing with an issue in his left wrist - though both were projected to be ready for the Lightning's post-Olympic stretch run...

...a run that is quite favorable to the Lightning, who play 14 of their 24 remaining games at home, punctuated by two homestands of six games each, meaning that once they have completed their four game road trip to start the stretch run, they will be at home for all but six of their remaining games.

In no danger of losing a playoff spot, the third-seeded Lightning have the luxury and depth to hold off on any or all three until returning to Tampa after the protracted roadie - but with all of them to be evaluated within the next couple of days, the situation remains fluid.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/lightning-to-evaluate-stamkos-two.html#.UwUGU4Ucq58

Predators' GM Poile has third surgery; expected to return to duties soon

How unlucky is it to be David Poile?  Well, with the odds of being struck by a rouge puck square in the face while standing in the relative safety of a tunnel leading to the dressing room being about a gazillion-to-one, that's pretty unlucky.

Some may say he's fortunate that the puck nailed him just above the eye, sparing his vision - but having to endure three surgeries that prevented him from overseeing a Team USA roster that he built from the ground up as General Manager for the squad has to be disheartening, though his charges are one win away from the medal round at the Sochi Olympics.

Poile is expected to resume his duties as the General Manager for the NHL's Nashville Predators at around the same time next week that their post-Olympic schedule commences with an absolutely brutal stretch run that includes seventeen current playoff seed holders in 23 games...

...starting with five straight at home but followed by 12 of 18 on the road, with no more than two in a row at home in that span.  Winners of just two games in the last seven, the hard-luck Preds have just 60 points but sit only four points out of the eighth and final seed in Western Conference.

As for Poile, he issued a statement released by the team on Tuesday at the same time that it was revealed that he had undergone a third procedure:

"I know that I have a challenging road ahead, but am going to embrace the challenge and am eager to get back to work. Thank you, in particular to the medical teams at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minn., and Vanderbilt Medical Center here in Nashville for the outstanding care and attention I have received and continue to receive. Thanks also to all those in Nashville and throughout the hockey community who have reached out to offer support and encouragement. It has been uplifting and most appreciated. I'm looking forward to watching USA's quest for the Gold Medal in Sochi and the Predators resuming the playoff race."

At the time of the injury, it was reported by several media outlets that Poile had suffered a fracture orbital bone and fractures to his nose.  The incident with the rouge puck occurred during a morning skate in preparation for his Predators' game against the Minnesota Wild in St. Paul.

He was taken immediately to the hospital where he went under the knife twice, and has been wearing a patch over his eye.  The third procedure was designed for "Further evaluation of his injury" according to the statement, "while remaining under observation as the medical team continues to assess his recovery."

Sounds like if he comes out of this without any vision issues, he will be very lucky indeed.

MRI reveals broken hand for Rangers' Mats Zuccarello

The New York Rangers' worst fear has been realized.

Demure right winger Mats Zuccarello hes departed Sochi and is returning to New York with his hand splinted and wrapped, an MRI revealing a non-displaced fracture to his right hand.

Though the team has not confirmed that diagnosis - nor should they at this juncture - they have confirmed that Zuccarello is on his way back to New York and is scheduled to meet with team physicians on Thursday:

A further update on @zuccarello36: he will arrive in New York tomorrow and meet with #NYR doctor Thursday afternoon
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 19, 2014

As reported here on Tuesday, Zuccarello injured the hand in Group B play against Austria and was forced to watch his Norwegian teammates get pounded by the powerful Russian team in the qualifying round - and while there are conflicting reports among various news agencies of exact day that "The Hobbit" will return to the United States, what is not in conflict is that this injury is a serious blow to a Rangers' team that was white-hot entering the break.

Winners of five of their last six games and with a less-than-imposing schedule down the stretch, the Rangers seemed primed to secure a playoff berth - and they still may, but the loss of their leading scorer for what is rumored to be four-to-six weeks dampens that enthusiasm.

With 67 points and 23 games left on the Rangers' schedule, the Blue Shirts currently sit on the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference, but with six teams within five points of the Rangers, that status is tenuous to say the least.

Zuccarello's is just the latest injury to a star NHL player in the Sochi Games, a point of contention for commissioner Gary Bettman to consider when making a decision as to whether the NHL will continue to allow it's players to compete in the Olympics going forward.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/mri-reveals-broken-hand-for-rangers.html#.UwTq04Ucq58

Rangers' Mats Zuccarello suffers hand injury; status in doubt for post-Olympic schedule

Norway's Olympic tournament is over, but the headlines regarding their lone NHL player are far from done.

New York Rangers' Mats Zuccarello suffered a hand injury in Norway's 3-1 loss to Austria in their final Group B preliminary match and was scratched from the roster for Tuesday's 4-0 sacrifice to the host Russians - and now the focus lands on how severe Zuccarello's injury actually is.

"The Hobbit", as Zuccarello is affectionately referred to by fans of the Blue Shirts due to his demure 5' 7". 180 pound frame, has been as productive as you'd want from a third line right winger, leading his team in points with 43 in 58 games played on 15 goals and 28 dimes, his slick passing regularly drawing gasps of awe from the crowd at Madison Square Garden...

...so it comes as no surprise that the faithful are anxiously awaiting word as to his availability once the NHL schedule resumes next week - and word could be as close as Thursday, when the Rangers can hold their first practice in preparation for the stretch run.

With 67 points, the Rangers are a distant second in the Metropolitan Division behind Pittsburgh but thanks to a hot streak just before the break, their total is good enough for the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference - and with a less than murderous schedule, the Rangers should easily make the playoffs.

But if Zuccarello is down for any protracted length of time, that hot steak - winning five of six, the five wins by scoring an average of 4.5 goals per game - could suffer by a goal per game, Zuccarello's average during the streak.

The Rangers first game coming out of the break will be at Madison Square Garden next Thursday, hosting the reigning Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/rangers-mats-zuccarello-suffers-hand.html#.UwPt-YUcq58

Russia's Ilya Kovalchuk plays on injured ankle; scores in win over Norway

Practice makes perfect?  Ilya Kovalchuk disagrees.

Not in the way that basketball player Allen Iverson did in his infamous rant in response to being fined for missing practice years back, but simply because he feels that practice can't simulate game conditions - and while the Norwegian Team probably takes his remarks as disrespectful, in the end, he is correct.

Kovalchuk and his Russian teammates put a hurting on Norway in a qualification playoff match that the former New Jersey Devils' - who retired from the NHL this past summer - felt was much better than just practicing for an Olympic quarterfinals matchup with Finland, a matchup that they earned with a 4-0 blowout of their Norwegian counterparts on Tuesday.

Kovalchuk in loss to USA (Jean Levac/Postmedia news)

"I think we didn't give them much and that's a good sign,” said Kovalchuk, who has apparently overcome a painful looking ankle injury against Slovakia to score Russia's second goal against Norway. "We have less than 24 hours to prepare for the next game. We have to take the time to prepare the best we can."

They will have to be at the top of their game against Finland, a defense-based squad with a imposing blue line pairings and superb goaltending - a scenario that doesn't bode well for the Russians if they can't generate some offense, particularly on the power play where they are a combined 2 for 16.

"They're a good team." Kovalchuk said of the Finnish team. "They've got a good goalie and we have to find a way to beat him if we want a chance to win, I think we play better and better with each game. Even with Slovakia I think we played well and created a lot of chances."

The line of  Alexander Radulov, Detroit Red Wings' Pavel Datsyuk and Kovalchuk have provided most of the offensive output in these games, but even the captain for the Russians seemed perplexed as to what to do about the power play, stating simply:

Asked Pavel Datsyuk what's wrong with the power play. He gave a big sigh and said, "We need shoot more." Then nothing.
— Jason Brough (@JasonPHT) February 18, 2014

Radulov came under strict scrutiny after the Russians lost to the Americans in the epic shootout in the preliminaries, but came back with two goals against the Finns, drawing Kovalchuk to comment.

“Radulov doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone,” said Kovalchuk “He is usually very energetic, he moves a lot and creates opportunities. He is a good player.”, a thought echoed by coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov, who after the game with the Americans furiously blurted out that Radulov "Should be scratched, among other things" for drawing crucial penalties in the loss.

“He was dynamic and he was effective and he got better throughout the game," Bilyaletdinov admitted following the win over Finland, prompting the following tweet from TSN reporter Bruce Arthur:

Alex Radulov is forgiven, until the next time he is Alex Radulov
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) February 18, 2014

Perhaps the soap opera that is the Russian team is not so much just one player, but that they are so concerned with defending their home ice that they're afraid to loosen up and just play the way that their enormously talented players are capable?

Whatever the case, if they play like they have been for the tournament against Finland, their home ice advantage will melt into the ice sheet, because they will have been eliminated from their own games.

Awkwardness awaits Russian Voynov and American Quick back in Los Angeles

When the Sochi Olympic Games are in the books and the National Hockey League resumes it schedule for the stretch run, there is going to be some awkwardness as teammates on NHL clubs reassemble from being divided by borders, as 149 players accepted the honor of being invited to represent their country on the biggest stage in the world...

...but perhaps no reunion will be as awkward as when American goaltender Jonathan Quick and Russian defenseman Slava Voynov take the ice together in practice for the Los Angeles Kings.

Words have been spoken regarding a potential game-winning goal for the Russians in their group match against the United States with just under five minutes left in the contest that sent the decidedly partisan crowd into a frenzy, retribution finally in hand after 34 years of having to endure Al Michaels' iconic "Do you believe in miracles?" call of the 1980 American victory over what was then the Soviet Union in the Lake Placid Olympics.

regardless of who dislodged the net, there are fences to be mended in L.A.

But the excitement for the Russians and their fans was short-lived, the goal scored by defenseman Fedor Tyutin disallowed because the American goal had come off it's moorings before the shot.

Outrage and frothing indignation followed quickly, accusations of dark malfeasance and outright cheating wafting in the thick disappointment of the Russian locker room - as the host team lamented a missed opportunity, their anger and fingers pointed right at Quick, the loudest of accusers his Los Angeles teammate who has played in front of the netminder for the past three years.

Voynov on Quick dislodging the net before the Tyutin disallowed goal: "I play with him. I know that's his style." #USAvRUS
— Dmitry Chesnokov (@dchesnokov) February 15, 2014

Yikes!  In the heat of the moment or not, accusing a teammate of cheating - ongoing - is sure to be a matter of some attention when the two meet up in L.A. after the games, and possibly a statement that brings scrutiny down on Quick every time a goal is uprooted from it's moorings with the veteran netminder in the crease.

Both coaches took the high road in regard to the incident, American bench boss Dan Blysma calling the match "a great game all around" with Russian coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov confirming Blysma's opinion through an interpreter.

"A great game today," Bilyaletdinov said. "I believe the spectators also loved it. A very dynamic game where both teams performed at their top level, so I enjoyed the game.", but then addressed the obvious story line as diplomatically as possible under the circumstances. "We regret that that one was disallowed," said Bilyaletdinov, adding "I do believe there was a mistake by the referee but it's our job to prepare for the next match now."

"Definitely a goal" added Russian forward Alex Ovechkin, who knows a thing or two about scoring - also stating that Quick had dislodged the goal, something that the American stopper brushed aside like a blocker save. "I didn't know until after when I turned around and saw it was off," said Quick of the goal coming off it's mooring, calling it a "a lucky break."

Russian fans no doubt call it other things, probably laced with colorful metaphors - and memes started appearing all over the internet almost immediately after the questionable call...

There's already a meme in Russia after yesterday. It reads "Check it out! I can now stand behind the net." pic.twitter.com/5n0dFI2vJH
— Dmitry Chesnokov (@dchesnokov) February 16, 2014

...not sure whether Voynov found that funny, but it only feeds into the awkwardness that is sure to cause a trifle of rude dissension and some derision in the Kings' locker room, particularly if the Russians don't get the opportunity to avenge the loss - which is what veteran Russian winger Ilya Kovalchuk suggested should be in the offing.

"It is only a preliminary-round game," Kovalchuk quipped, lending a sense of maturity and sportsmanship to the debate "Everything will be decided in the semifinal and the final."

Not everything, Ilya, as Volnov and Quick has some fences to mend back in California after the games, regardless of who wins what... 

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/awkwardness-awaits-russian-voynov-and.html#.UwJF2YUcq58

Red Wings' Henrik Zetterberg: Pain is "twenty time worse than before"

Swedish team physician Bjorn Waldeback has been a very visible presence at the Sochi Olympic Games and a highly sough-after interview - but it goes without saying that he isn't as popular in Detroit, with either the Red Wings management or fans.

Why?  It's certainly not because they hold him responsible for team captain Henrik Zetterberg's herniated disc, it's simply a matter of hating the messenger because of the message - at least as far as the fans are concerned, but for Red Wings' management, they probably wish the apparently loquacious Dr. Waldeback would keep his mouth shut.

With National Hockey League injury reporting rules requiring just identification an ambiguous area on the human body where in losing a couple of fingers would be generalized as an "upper-body injury", the good doctor went above and beyond with the international media by pinpointing not only what Zetterberg's injury was, but also that he could be out for the entire season.

Zetterberg mixing it up in Sochi (Mark Humphrey/AP)

"They have to make a decision over there and then see, but if it stays like this that will be the case," Waldeback said in response to media questions regarding the possibility of the veteran forward missing the rest of the season - while also qualifying his remarks by adding that he has yet to be evaluated by the team.

For his part, Zetterberg hasn't exactly been cryptic in his comments to the Swedish press, replying to their queries as if he was responding to standard questions from an ER triage nurse.

I felt it a bit after the game against the Czech Republic, but no more than usual," Zetterberg offered to Aftonbladet, a Swedish newspaper. "But on Thursday it got worse and worse and now it is twenty times worse than before."

"Before" being earlier this season, when he was forced to the shelf for 11 games with the disc issue. "We'll see when I go home," he continued, "It hurts at the slightest movement."

A fact echoed by teammate Niklas Kronwall. "What he's going through right now, it hurts just to watch him.  He goes through more than most people just to be able to play."

So the cat's out of the proverbial bag in Detroit, and now the next move is up to general manager Ken Holland, coach Mike Babcock and Red Wings' medical staff, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that there is no joy in Hockeytown - and the fallout from the latest back flare-up looks like it's going to last longer than even Waldeback would enjoy.

http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/02/red-wings-henrik-zetterberg-pain-is.html#.UwFsmYUcq58