Tkachuk Leaves the Ice in Game 2

[powderjunkie]

If it's concussion related, I hope we don't see him until round 2, no matter how this series plays out.

[activeStick]

Agreed. If it is indeed symptoms of a concussion, make sure he's completely clear and okay, and then wait some more to be safe. Don't want him or any Flames lives put at risk for hockey, playoffs or not.

[djsFlames]

Originally Posted by OldSam

Well, they invented the Fat Johnny story before they realized "unfit to play" was being used by every team for any and all issues. So I could imagine them inventing other stories just because.

I certainly hope it isn't true.

Snet throwing the C word around without actual confirmation of some kind would be a dick move on their part, since that's a serious/concerning thing. With their general disrespect towards tkachuk looking to vilify him that would be a low stoop. Then again they love their hype with 0% substance, aka everything edmonton related.

[Snuffleupagus]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

If it's concussion related, I hope we don't see him until round 2, no matter how this series plays out.

How does this make sense?

[doozwimp]

Originally Posted by Snuffleupagus

How does this make sense?

You dont want to f with head injuries.

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

Snet throwing the C word around without actual confirmation of some kind would be a dick move on their part, since that's a serious/concerning thing. With their general disrespect towards tkachuk looking to vilify him that would be a low stoop. Then again they love their hype with 0% substance, aka everything edmonton related.

It's obviously a concussion. The only reason it's not going to be said is because the NHL communication is extremely confidential due to the circumstances; even moreso than usual (upper body injury). Everyone knows it's a concussion, so it's not a issue at all with Sportsnet just flat out acknowledging it rather than skirt around what everyone knows.

[Strange Brew]

So is reporting a player having a concussion a greater or lesser violation of their privacy than Simmons reporting that Mathews tested positive for Covid 19?

[Flamenspiel]

^^It depends if there is a HIPAA breach or not. I think they are guessing about the concussion. I don’t think the Flames would have released that.

The coronavirus information was probably known and publicly available. Unless they hacked into Mathews health records, which would be a breach.

[VilleN]

Originally Posted by doozwimp

You dont want to f with head injuries.

I think he means that if we lose the series, how is it possible to see Tkachuk in round 2.

[Strange Brew]

Interesting point about HIPAA. I didn't pay too much attention to the Mathews deal, as over 5 million people in the US have tested positive. But he seemed snarky about Simmons reporting on it.

I assume Simmons heard through people close to Mathews, which is likely how most sports injury rumors get spread. Didn't ever think of those stories as HIPAA violations.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

So is reporting a player having a concussion a greater or lesser violation of their privacy than Simmons reporting that Mathews tested positive for Covid 19?

Outside of any violation, I also think there is a distinct difference between speculating on a hockey-related injury and reporting on a medical condition unrelated to hockey.

It’s ok for sports writers to speculate on what injury was received by a player who was clearly injured on a play, but do we really want them following players around in the off season, and reporting about players as they pick up things like COVID, Norovirus, Herpes, Hepatitis, etc? Do we want to normalise sports writers releasing cancer diagnosis, Parkinson’s, AIDS, etc without players permission?

I don’t know. I still think players deserve some level of privacy. They’re just human beings.

[GranteedEV]

Did we ever get confirmation that this was a concussion? I'm starting to wonder if it's still affecting him.

[Jiri Hrdina]

If it was concussion related then I like to think they would have shut him down long before this. But I do believe there must be something wrong, more than attitude. He's just too good of a player. I hate speculating on stuff like this but in the back of my mind I had wondered if perhaps he contracted COVID at some point.

[Classic_Sniper]

It definitely looked like a concussion. But he had all offseason to rest up and he looked fine coming out of the gates. The 2 biggest problems I've seen from him this season seems to be his hands and his pace. He's fumbled a lot of pucks this season, hasn't tipped many pucks in the net and has a hell of a time trying to finish in his office. He's missed a gargantuan amount of wide open cages this season, none bigger than the one in Montreal where he dekes and backhands off the post despite the yawning cage.

The other issue I mentioned is the pace of play. He's had a real hard time trying to keep up with his linemates this season. His skating has never been strong, so he needs a center who can slow the pace of play down. Backlund is the best center on the team at holding on to pucks through the middle of the ice and slowing down the pace of play which really helps Tkachuk out because of his poor skating. Guess that's why these 2 fit like 2 peas in a pod. Tkachuk has great hockey IQ, but when he has to play at such a high pace, I don't think he has time to read plays because he's still just trying to get into the play. So it's lead to mistakes and boy has he made a lot of them this season.

[Bourque's Twin]

If it were a concussion, the team wouldn’t let him be playing if it was still lingering. They certainly would want him to be fighting and throwing hits like he does.

I think it’s a result of the culture in the room. It’s pretty deflating to give it your all, be vocal, expect a lot out of your teammates and then get shunned for it.

I hope they get rid of the country club attitude before Tkachuk becomes another victim of this terrible hockey team.

[Classic_Sniper]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

If it was concussion related then I like to think they would have shut him down long before this. But I do believe there must be something wrong, more than attitude. He's just too good of a player. I hate speculating on stuff like this but in the back of my mind I had wondered if perhaps he contracted COVID at some point.

It's a fact that he contracted Covid. I believe Eric Francis on broadcast TV had mentioned it at some point. But he picked it up sometime between the end of the regular season and sometime before the play in series. He was able to recover and his line looked absolutely dominant against the Jets. Best line on either side I thought. So Covid can't be blamed.

[Freddy]

People speculate Tkachuk has been ‘off’ since the Muzzin incident early in the season, but I point to this incident last year as when the decline started. I hope he still has value around the league because if I was Tre I’d cash him in ASAP.

[Classic_Sniper]

Originally Posted by Bourque's Twin

If it were a concussion, the team wouldn’t let him be playing if it was still lingering. They certainly would want him to be fighting and throwing hits like he does.

I think it’s a result of the culture in the room. It’s pretty deflating to give it your all, be vocal, expect a lot out of your teammates and then get shunned for it.

I hope they get rid of the country club attitude before Tkachuk becomes another victim of this terrible hockey team.
I hope

I think all this stuff is greatly exaggerated. Just your typical media driven BS. He's had a really hard time finishing on chances and reading the play. I don't know how culture or room dynamics affects that. How many blind passes up the middle has he connected on all season, like 1 maybe? His hands have gone straight to the dumper this season, missing easy rebounds, easy tap ins and who can forget that embarrassing whiff of a turnover that lead to the empty netter last week, ugh.

I did see some real chemistry between he, Lindholm and Gaudreau though. They would've been even better had Tkachuk executed a bit more. But with more time together, I do think he still has the tools to completely turn it around.

[timbit]

The lengthy 2 zone backhand pass he made to Johnny the other night, for the breakaway goal, was ELITE skill and “tools”.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by timbit

The lengthy 2 zone backhand pass he made to Johnny the other night, for the breakaway goal, was ELITE skill and “tools”.

I remember it well. It was one of his 3 assists in his last 10 games

That one pass oughta hold those SOBs who don’t like his effort for another couple of weeks