Judging from the way Claude Giroux was talking Monday after practice at Wells Fargo Center, I would say the chances of him playing tonight against the Devils, is 50/50 - at best.
There's been a lot of chatter on the internet since he spoke yesterday from fans begging, almost pleading, for common sense to kick in and not allow Giroux to play.
I concur. There is absolutely no need to rush him back. It's been roughly 5 weeks since he had surgery to repair two tendons on the top of his right hand.
By every account, including his own, he is actually ahead of schedule. He's making very fast progress. So why push it?
The Flyers often push the limits on players coming back from injuries. I have always felt that the athlete himself knows his body the best. Giroux has had some injuries hover over him the past two season going into the fall.
If he has learned anything, it should be this: caution is the best recommendation. I don't care if Giroux doesn't play a single minute of pre-season so long as he is ready for the opener on Oct. 2 against Toronto.
And if we get to Oct. 2 and he's not 100 percent, then I don't want him pushing the envelope there, either. If he feels, as he told us, there are things he still can't do with his hand that are central to his ability to use his stick on the ice, then I want him sitting in the press box.
There is no need for the Flyers to make a careless decision in pre-season just because Giroux said he was aiming for Tuesday's game as his comeback and now he might not hit the mark.
Let him rest it.
“I mean, it’s the preseason,” Giroux told me when I asked him, 'what if Lavy [Peter Laviolette] asks you tomorrow if you are ready to go?'
“It’s different in the regular season. If this was the regular season, I’d have been playing a long time ago, but it’s just making sure it’s 100 percent and not taking a risk. I mean, we still have a week and half before the season, and I’d be not smart just to rush it.”
I hope Giroux follows his own good instincts here.
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Should be an interesting week to see whether Michael Raffl continues to win the battle for the 13th forward spot over Chris VanderVelde.
That will play out in these final three exhibitions.
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