Hockey Night's Take 5
Last Updated: Tuesday, November 3, 2009 | 10:27 AM ET
Tim Wharnsby, CBC Sports
Carolina Hurricanes' Ray Whitney and Eric Staal battle with San Jose Sharks' Douglas Murray. Staal is one of a number of star players out with injuries. (Gerry Broome/Associated Press)1. Injured superstars
Injuries to star players continue to be a big story in the first 34 days of the 2009-10 NHL regular season. Just take a glance at some of the players currently recovering from injuries.
Ottawa’s Jason Spezza is expected to miss his third game on Thursday with back and groin ailments. Carolina’s Eric Staal is expected to miss several games with an undisclosed upper body injury. Chicago’s Jonathan Toews has been off the ice two weeks with concussion-like symptoms. Washington’s Alex Ovechkin has been listed week-to-week with a left arm or shoulder injury. Boston’s Marc Savard (foot) still is another two-to four weeks away from returning. Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin (shoulder) and Philadelphia’s Simon Gagne (groin) were hurt a week ago. While Malkin could return next week, Gagne will undergo surgery on Tuesday and be lost for up to two months.
2. 'Shane' on you James
Phoenix veteran forward Shane Doan almost joined the injury list. But two days after getting knocked silly by a forearm from Anaheim defenceman James Wisniewski, who was given a two-game suspension for his headshot, Doan scored a goal and an assist in the Coyotes 5-3 defeat to Los Angeles on Monday.
Veteran referees Paul Devorski and Stephen Walkom did not call a penalty on Wisniewski's cheap shot, but the Anaheim defenceman did have to fight Phoenix defenceman Keith Yandle immediately after the hit and again a period later when Doan attempted to settle a score. While the Coyotes were losers on the scoreboard against the Kings on Monday, it was a huge downer for them to peer into the stands to see a franchise-low crowd of 5,855.
3. Team Canada watch
With the Vancouver Olympic countdown coming up to 100 days, Canadian men’s hockey team executive director Steve Yzerman is expected to meet with other members of his management team this week to discuss candidates for the team roster. The roster will be finalized in late December.
One player who has skated his way into the picture is 33-year-old Los Angeles forward Ryan Smyth. He has undergone a renaissance with the Kings, playing on the top line with Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams. Still one of the best in close around the opposition's net, Smyth is tied for fifth in league scoring, with eight goals and 19 points.
4. A tale of perseverance
Rookie right wing David Laliberte, 23, became the fifth player in Flyers history to score goals in his first two games. The native of Saint-Liboire, Que., has quite a story. Not long after the Flyers selected the former 50-goal scorer with the Prince Edward Island Rocket of the QMJHL late in the fourth round of the 2004 NHL draft, he was forced to sit out an entire year because of an inoperable injury to a nerve in his back. The injury sent pain shooting down his leg and made it difficult for him to walk and tie his skates. After a taking a year to recover, Laliberte returned to the game in December 2005 with a bang, scoring three times for the Rocket.
5. Mueller's struggle in Phoenix
Whatever happened to Phoenix forward Peter Mueller? Big things were predicted for the 6-foot-2, 205-pound forward when he checked in with 22 goals as a rookie. That production dipped to 13 goals last season. This season, he has only two assists in 12 games and has been a healthy scratch twice. His problem has been players like Vernon Fiddler (two goals, eight points), Matthew Lombardi (three goals, seven points), Daniel Winnik (two goals, seven points) and Martin Hanzel (two goals, five points). who have all surpassed Mueller on the Coyotes depth chart.
