Boston Bruins' Marc Savard out indefinitely
Bruins center Marc Savard is out indefinitely after a vicious hit in Boston's 2-1 loss at Pittsburgh on Sunday. There's no timetable for Savard's return as injuries and illness take center ice in the NHL with about a month left in the regular season. The Ottawa Senators are recovering from a flu bug that swept through the team recently, and Columbus Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash is nursing a "lower body injury."
Most people wouldn’t want to get anywhere near someone’s used hockey equipment. But Sidney Crosby isn’t your typical someone. Reebok is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the return of Crosby’s missing stick and hockey glove from the gold-medal game at the Olympics.
This isn’t new for Crosby; in 2005, his sweater went missing after Canada beat Russia for gold at the World Junior Championships. People just can’t seem to resist getting a five-finger discount on a valuable piece of hockey memorabilia.
Let’s move from true crime to medical drama. There’s a disease in Ottawa that’s eating away at the betting odds.
Sick Boy
It’s usually not too wise for handicappers to get up in arms about a flu story. But we’re not just talking about one or two players with runny noses here. A dozen or so members of the Ottawa Senators have come down with the flu bug, and the Sens have lost three games in a row to fall to 36-25-5 (-19.81 units).
Ottawa was outscored 10-3 in that span, most recently dropping a 2-1 shootout decision Saturday at home to the Toronto Maple Leafs (+168), the last-place team in the Eastern Conference.
The ill Senators have taken the long flight westward to face the Edmonton Oilers (21-38-6, -20.24 units), the last-place team in their conference. It’s not a day at the health spa for these flu-ridden athletes; making matters worse, Tuesday’s weather forecast calls for chilly conditions and a 30 percent chance of snow in the City of Champions. Okay, Edmonton’s hockey team isn’t what it was, but at least the Oilers have won their last two games, blanking the New Jersey Devils 2-0 on Monday as +205 home dogs.
One to the Head
There are worse things to have than the flu, like the Grade 2 concussion Marc Savard (33 points in 41 games) of the Boston Bruins suffered after a close encounter with Pittsburgh Penguins grinder Matt Cooke on Sunday.
Savard took a blindside shoulder to the head, was knocked unconscious, and had to be sent to Massachusetts General Hospital on a stretcher. It will reportedly take another few days of tests just to determine how long Savard will be out of commission.
The Bruins aren’t in a position to afford losing Savard’s services. They were able to weather the storm after losing breakout star Tuukka Rask (.926 save percentage) for three games with a swollen right knee, but that’s because Boston already had reigning Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas (.917 SV%) in reserve. Rask is expected back in the lineup Tuesday when the Bruins visit the Maple Leafs (20-33-12, -27.88 units), who have lost five of their last six games. Boston is a –130 road favorite with a total of five goals.
One to the Body
Hockey is a brutal game, no doubt about it. Columbus Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash (28 goals in 65 games) suffered a “lower body injury” during the first period of Monday’s embarrassing 6-0 shutout loss to the Los Angeles Kings (-190 home faves) and did not return. This happened on a play where Nash was both hit by Jarret Stoll and slashed by Jeff Halpern.
Now Columbus (25-30-11, -23.12 units) has to prepare for double duty on Tuesday against the Anaheim Ducks (30-27-8, -20.81 units) without knowing the condition of their top scorer.
Perhaps the Blue Jackets have already gone into the tank. They’ve lost all three games since the Olympic break, and they dumped winger Raffi Torres (19 goals in 60 games) to the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline for fringe defenseman Nathan Paetsch (12 games played) and a pick.
Only the Maple Leafs have cost their supporters more money this year. The Jackets currently have 61 points, tied with the Carolina Hurricanes for 26th place in the 30-team league. A few more losses wouldn’t hurt Columbus when it comes to the NHL draft lottery.
Bruins center Marc Savard is out indefinitely after a vicious hit in Boston's 2-1 loss at Pittsburgh on Sunday. There's no timetable for Savard's return as injuries and illness take center ice in the NHL with about a month left in the regular season. The Ottawa Senators are recovering from a flu bug that swept through the team recently, and Columbus Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash is nursing a "lower body injury."
Most people wouldn’t want to get anywhere near someone’s used hockey equipment. But Sidney Crosby isn’t your typical someone. Reebok is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the return of Crosby’s missing stick and hockey glove from the gold-medal game at the Olympics.
This isn’t new for Crosby; in 2005, his sweater went missing after Canada beat Russia for gold at the World Junior Championships. People just can’t seem to resist getting a five-finger discount on a valuable piece of hockey memorabilia.
Let’s move from true crime to medical drama. There’s a disease in Ottawa that’s eating away at the betting odds.
Sick Boy
It’s usually not too wise for handicappers to get up in arms about a flu story. But we’re not just talking about one or two players with runny noses here. A dozen or so members of the Ottawa Senators have come down with the flu bug, and the Sens have lost three games in a row to fall to 36-25-5 (-19.81 units).
Ottawa was outscored 10-3 in that span, most recently dropping a 2-1 shootout decision Saturday at home to the Toronto Maple Leafs (+168), the last-place team in the Eastern Conference.
The ill Senators have taken the long flight westward to face the Edmonton Oilers (21-38-6, -20.24 units), the last-place team in their conference. It’s not a day at the health spa for these flu-ridden athletes; making matters worse, Tuesday’s weather forecast calls for chilly conditions and a 30 percent chance of snow in the City of Champions. Okay, Edmonton’s hockey team isn’t what it was, but at least the Oilers have won their last two games, blanking the New Jersey Devils 2-0 on Monday as +205 home dogs.
One to the Head
There are worse things to have than the flu, like the Grade 2 concussion Marc Savard (33 points in 41 games) of the Boston Bruins suffered after a close encounter with Pittsburgh Penguins grinder Matt Cooke on Sunday.
Savard took a blindside shoulder to the head, was knocked unconscious, and had to be sent to Massachusetts General Hospital on a stretcher. It will reportedly take another few days of tests just to determine how long Savard will be out of commission.
The Bruins aren’t in a position to afford losing Savard’s services. They were able to weather the storm after losing breakout star Tuukka Rask (.926 save percentage) for three games with a swollen right knee, but that’s because Boston already had reigning Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas (.917 SV%) in reserve. Rask is expected back in the lineup Tuesday when the Bruins visit the Maple Leafs (20-33-12, -27.88 units), who have lost five of their last six games. Boston is a –130 road favorite with a total of five goals.
One to the Body
Hockey is a brutal game, no doubt about it. Columbus Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash (28 goals in 65 games) suffered a “lower body injury” during the first period of Monday’s embarrassing 6-0 shutout loss to the Los Angeles Kings (-190 home faves) and did not return. This happened on a play where Nash was both hit by Jarret Stoll and slashed by Jeff Halpern.
Now Columbus (25-30-11, -23.12 units) has to prepare for double duty on Tuesday against the Anaheim Ducks (30-27-8, -20.81 units) without knowing the condition of their top scorer.
Perhaps the Blue Jackets have already gone into the tank. They’ve lost all three games since the Olympic break, and they dumped winger Raffi Torres (19 goals in 60 games) to the Buffalo Sabres at the trade deadline for fringe defenseman Nathan Paetsch (12 games played) and a pick.
Only the Maple Leafs have cost their supporters more money this year. The Jackets currently have 61 points, tied with the Carolina Hurricanes for 26th place in the 30-team league. A few more losses wouldn’t hurt Columbus when it comes to the NHL draft lottery.
