Flyers d-man Braydon Coburn will replace Marc Methot (back) on Team Canada’s worlds roster in Belarus…
— Pierre LeBrun (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) May 6, 2014
Ugh.
It’s the offseason but the negative storylines associated with the 2013/14 version of the Ottawa Senators just refuse to end.
Aside from a Bruce Garrioch tweet indicating that Methot would be flying back as soon as possible to be examined by the Senators’ doctors, the severity of Methot’s back injury has not been disclosed.
Considering Methot was healthy enough to fly out with teammate Kyle Turris to Belarus this past Saturday, there’s hope that whatever injury Methot suffered is minor and he’s simply returning as a precautionary measure.
On the other hand, it never seems right to understate the effects or complications of a back injury, regardless of its severity.
I feel for Methot and not just because he’ll now have to take a transatlantic flight with an injured back.
Having been rightfully passed over for the 2014 Canadian men’s Olympic hockey team, the likelihood that a strong World Championships performance would put him in the conversation to be included on a possible 2018 Olympic roster was remote. Nevertheless, the opportunity to represent the Canada in Belarus still meant a lot to him.
Without knowing the severity of his injury, it’s probably premature to worry about how it could affect Methot’s preparation for the 2014/15 season, but with only one-year left on his contract, he has a lot to play for next season.
The Senators will also be relying upon him heavily too, so if the back continues to plague him, it would be disastrous for the Senators.
There was already reason enough to fret over the state of the Senators’ blue line with a healthy Methot, so I don’t want to think about the various implications (ie. Jared Cowen playing top pairing minutes with Erik Karlsson at 5v5) if he’s not healthy enough to play.
Blergh.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
