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Yesterday, Philadelphia Inquirer beat writer Sam Carchidi revealed that Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger has shown signs of improvement in his recovery from post-concussion syndrome. Pronger visited with a specialist in Pittsburgh earlier this week.
At this point, however, any progress Pronger makes is toward recovering his quality of life off the ice. Playing hockey is not -- and should not be -- on the radar screen for the foreseeable future, and probably should never be a serious consideration again.
While every case is different, the harrowing experiences of former Flyers' captain Keith Primeau is a stark reminder of just how serious concussions really are.
"I was driving home from dropping my kids off at school, and I have a headache today," Primeau told the Sporting News. "I was thinking back to that point in time, almost 12 months into my last concussion, I was still trying to get back. When I reflect on that moment in time—I’m now seven years removed, and I still suffer post-concussion symptoms —how in the world did I ever think I was going to come back and play? How did I ever hold on to that hope that, the next day, I was going to wake up and feel fine? The next days just kept coming and going."
Some players are luckier than others. Ian Laperriere has been able to regain a quality of life that is largely free of post-concussion symptoms. Even so, concussion issues cut short his career by at least two seasons.
As part of the negotiations for the next Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NHL and NHLPA, there needs to be a change in the current over-35 contracting rules as pertains to career-ending injuries. It is unfair both to the player and the team to prolong the situation for multiple years via the charade of pretending the player has a chance to play again, and then putting him on long-term injured reserve for multiple years until the contract is done.
This is especially true in a case like Pronger's, where the injury had zero to do with the player's age. This was not a back problem or a bad knee from years of wear-and-tear on the ice. The ocular concussion Pronger suffered from taking a stick to the eye plus whatever happened upon his return that caused another concussion (or re-aggravated the symptoms of the other one) could happen to any player at any age.
It was a hopeful sign to hear that Pronger has had some relief from the symptoms that have plagued him since late last year. But that should not be confused with an indication that the man can or should even consider trying to play hockey again. He has to put his family and his own health first. It makes no difference if he's a Hall of Fame candidate or he's a career role player like Lappy was.
The bottom line is that there are some things far more important in life than hockey. Pronger's family needs him to be well far more than the Flyers ever will.
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Jakub Voracek made his KHL debut yesterday for HC Lev Prague. It took him two periods to get his skating legs under him, but he was dominant in the third period of the team's 3-1 victory over Avangard Omsk.
Voracek played 15:09 in his first game, skating 17 shifts. He hustled up a beautiful assist on a Jiri Novotny goal that gave HC Lev a 2-1 lead in the third period. Later, playing the right half-boards on the power play, he created a pair of prime scoring chances for his team. While we all wish he was doing that for the Flyers rather than a KHL team, it is still a hopeful sign that he can pick up where he left off in the stretch drive and playoffs of last season.
Here are highlights of yesterday's game (no audio). The assist comes shortly after the 6-minute mark of the video.
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Scott Laughton, the Flyers' first round pick in the 2012 Entry Draft, recorded a pair of assists in Oshawa's 5-2 win over Peterborough in last night's OHL regular season opener. He tallied the secondary assist on the Lucas Lessio power play goal that opened the scoring midway through the first period. In the second period, Laughton set up a scoring chance that led to Lessio's slam-dunk rebound goal moments after the expiration of a power play.
Laughton also received a pair of minor penalties in the game. First, he tangled briefly with Nick Ritchie (offsetting roughing minors) late in the first period. Ritchie had kneed a Generals player earlier in the opening period. With Oshawa leading 4-0 in the opening minute of the third period, Laughton went off for interference.
Laughton's teammate and fellow Flyers draftee, Colin Suellentrop, was a plus-two in the game. The defensive defenseman did not record a point but was stoned on a good scoring chance in the waning minutes of the game.
Peterborough enforcer and Flyers prospect Derek Mathers was also a plus-two in the game. He came close to scoring twice, but was unable to get on the board. Unfortunately, Mathers also took an ill-advised roughing penalty in the third period that hurt his team.
With Peterborough trailing 4-0 but controlling the attack early in the third period, Mathers took what the Petes radio announcers conceded was an undisciplined penalty. Nineteen seconds later, the Generals scored again to extend their lead to 5-0.
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A host of Flyers prospects are in action today. Here are links to following the games:
* Fredric Larsson's Brynäs J20 team are at home to take on the Luleå J20 squad. The game starts at 1:00 PM eastern U.S./Canada time. Live text updates in English will be available by clicking here. Free webcasts are also sometimes available on the Brynäs Bambuser Channel. Today's BIF-LHF game figures to be a heated ones, as the two rivals will play each other tomorrow again at Läkerol Arena.
* Valeri Vasiliev has returned from a concussion. His MHC Spartak club will take on the CSKA Moscow junior team in MHL action today.
* Nick Cousins' Sault Ste. Marie team opens its regular season with a road match against Plymouth. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 7:05 PM eastern time. You can listen live to a free radio feed orpurchase a webcast.
* Laughton and Suellentrop's Oshawa squad is back in action tonight, taking on the Sudbury Wolves in the Generals' home opener. Here is the free radio feed (Sudbury broadcast) and the webcast purchase link.
* Taylor Leier's Portland Winterhawks team starts its WHL regular season tonight with a road game against the Seattle Thunderbirds. The game starts at 10 PM eastern. Leier is sidelined for a few more weeks while recovering from a torn abdominal muscle. If you want to catch the game anyway, here is the free radio feed plus the webcast purchase link.
* Mathers' Plymouth team is idle tonight. They will try to bounce back tomorrow from last night's ugly opening game performance.
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The NHL lockout has become Silly Season in Europe to the point where one has to be very careful in sifting out legitimate news of impending signings from baseless rumors.
Yesterday, for example, Evgeni Malkin's Russian based agent told Sport Express that a host of North American stars -- including Claude Giroux, Jonathan Toews, John Tavares and Capitals shutdown defenseman Karl Alzner -- were all seeking KHL deals and would be represented by him. The claim appears to be exaggerated at best, flat out untrue at worst.
On Wednesday, Jaromir Jagr told the Czech press that Giroux had no interest in the KHL. Specifically, Jagr said that HC Rytiri Kladno would love to have Giroux aboard on the Czech Extraliga team but could not afford to cover his insurance. As an alternative, Jagr suggested Giroux consider the KHL but the Flyers center told Jagr that he was not interested in the KHL. Earlier this summer, Giroux made a similar comment to Ilya Bryzgalov.
Meanwhile, there was another Lockout Silly Season rumor making the rounds yesterday; this one arising from Switzerland. It was said that National League club SC Bern was trying to lure Danny Briere and Giroux as a tandem signing.
On the surface, this one could have some merit to it. Briere played for Bern during the 2004-05 lockout and, if he decides to go to Europe, the team appears to be his most likely destination. However, given Briere's family obligations and the fact that he recently lost his mother, he is understandably taking his time to consider his decision about whether to stay put or play abroad.
Likewise, the Giroux part of the rumor has some seeming logic to it if Briere goes. The two players are friends as well as teammates (Giroux lived in Briere's house for a year). As such, one would think the club would become a potentially appealing option for Giroux if Briere goes. With two NHL players -- native Swiss defensemen Mark Streit and Roman Josi -- already aboard the Bern roster, the 12-time Swiss champs (most recently in 2009-10) remain strong contenders in NLA. The club also enjoys huge fan support, annually ranking tops among all European teams in both average and total attendance at home games. The team frequently fills its 17,000-plus seat arena to capacity.
It is no coincidence that Joe Thornton, Rick Nash, Tyler Seguin, Logan Couture and Tyler Ennis have opted for Switzerland over the KHL. The pleasant lifestyle for players in Switzerland -- light travel, solid caliber of play in NLA, decent pay relative to most other European leagues, and opportunities to explore the country due to a more relaxed schedule of games -- is what makes that country the circuit of choice for top North American players. It's also not hard to imagine Giroux enjoying himself immensely in Switzerland, both on and off the ice.
Even so, the official word from the Giroux camp is that the player prefers to wait awhile to see what happens with the NHL lockout before seriously considering ANY options in Europe. While one never knows what could happen, it does not appear that he is even narrowing down the many offers that have come his way.
Also, there is a four-import limit per team in the Swiss league, and Bern would have to do some juggling both financially (especially in terms of insurance coverage) and roster-wise to accommodate both Briere and Giroux. No doubt they'd do it if they can, but it's not something that can be accomplished with a snap of the fingers. It'd take time, and more legitimate "hard" news of an impending signing would become widely reported public knowledge by that time.
For these reasons, I'd file the Briere/Giroux to Bern rumor as a suspect one, at least for the time being.
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Former Flyers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky is following the same lockout course as ex-teammate Ilya Bryzgalov. Bobrovsky has signed to play in the KHL for the duration of the lockout.
SKA St. Petersburg issued a brief press release on its official Web site to confirm the signing.
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