Too bad it happened to his knee and not the gamesheet.
The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Alexei Kovalev is done for the year with a torn ACL in his left knee. This means a few things for the immediate future. Right away Senators fans can set aside all doubts that Kovalev will not show up in big playoff games. That’s one less thing for everyone to discuss going into the playoffs. This also has ramifications for the (almost) annual playoff tradition of nit-picking, finger pointing and scapegoating which was sure to have Kovalev at the centre of it this year. The cynics and the news writers will have to find a new target this year because we won’t be able to kick around ol’ Alex anymore this year. Maybe not ever. It’s certainly reasonable to assume this injury will represent a crossroads for his career. At age 37 overcoming such a severe injury will be no easy feet. As we saw with Jason Smith last season these things have a way of making one sit back and look at their options. *I’m the furthest thing from an authority on sports injuries so I called a friend in the medical profession to ask how bad a complete tear of the ACL was. After asking for a lamens terms explanation her response was “It’s brutal, just absolutley brutal.” I’m sure there’s more than a few jaded fans angry at the aging enigma’s mediocre season who have their fingers crossed that this is it for him. You gotta feel for the guy though, after all he’s been through this season (you know things aren’t great when you even have to address buying a gun) it would have been nice to see what he could do on a big stage when the games mattered most. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
Game Preview
Ottawa’s Lap Dogs (44-26-10) vs. Daniel Alfredsson Love Fest PT I (44-31-6)
Scotiabank Place, Kanata Ont. (aka in a city which does not use Cheese Whiz as a chaser for Broken Down Golf Cart shot.
TV: You better be close to one tonight! Game time is 7p.m – “I went to a hockey game last night and a big ceremony broke out”
Here’s what I wrote for the Citizen Prediction Panel.
Senators 5, Sabres 2
Games such as this one do not happen every night nor do they happen every year. The Senators will be playing in front of a spirited crowd who came because they heard it was giveaway t-shirt night. The Sens will be looking to celebrate Alfie’s big day with an inspired effort and then head into the playoffs on the right foot. We can forget the usual Ren and Stimpy dynamic the Sens have had with Buffalo this season and take in a defining night for the franchise.
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