TORONTO (Nov. 9) — Maple Leafs’ defenseman Mike Van Ryn had to be taken to hospital on a stretcher from the Air Canada Centre Saturday night because he suffered a concussion and broken nose on the first-period hit from behind by Montreal forward Tom Kostopoulos. But, Van Ryn will recover from those injuries much quicker than he will the broken hand he sustained in the mishap – known as a “boxer’s fracture”, for it involved the bones that connect to the knuckles. Or, in this case, specifically the metacarpal bones connecting the ring finger and “pinkie” finger on Van Ryn’s hand.
“That’s the bad injury,” Leafs’ GM Cliff Fletcher told me as he rode the elevator to his office afterwards. “He won’t be playing for at least a month.”
In fact, it could be longer – up to six weeks – before Van Ryn is fully healed and capable of returning to action. Ironically, former Leafs’ defenseman Bryan McCabe – now with Florida – suffered a similar injury last season, also against the Canadiens. McCabe missed 22 games (Dec. 18 to Feb. 5) when an innocent-looking hit along the side-boards in Montreal by Andrei Kostitsyn broke three metacarpal bones. McCabe underwent surgery to correct the fracture. It wasn’t immediately known whether Van Ryn would require an operation, as his fracture was slightly less severe.
The Van Ryn injury put a damper on a scintillating effort by the Maple Leafs, who thoroughly dominated the Canadiens while playing five-on-five. The lone edge experienced by an awkward-looking Montreal team occurred while its deadly powerplay was on the ice. In fact, I don’t remember the last time I saw the Canadiens perform as stupidly as they did in this game. From the ill-timed Kostopoulos hit, to dumb high-sticking and boarding penalties, and a complete lack of focus in the defensive zone, Guy Carbonneau’s crew looked like anything but a Stanley Cup contender.
That’s not to take credit away from the Leafs, who were fired up from the outset; even more so after the Kostopoulos-Van Ryn incident. Coach Ron Wilson made a good point in his post-game summation when he credited Carey Price with holding the Canadiens in the game – not the sort of praise you’d expect for a goalie that was scored upon six times. Fletcher’s acquisition of Mikhail Grabovski from the Habs is beginning to look like the steal of the off-season. Not only did Grabovski score a goal and an assist against the club that gave him up over the summer, he had half the Canadiens wanting to kill him towards the end of the game. Grabovski has scored in each of the past four outings and now leads the Leafs with seven goals.
Personally, it was a wonderful night, as I had a chance to catch up with several of the Leaf players I used to idolize as a teenager. Darryl Sittler, Lanny McDonald, Borje Salming and Dave (Tiger) Williams formed the nucleus of the good Toronto teams in the mid-to-late-1970s, and all four were in the building for the Hall of Fame celebration. Sittler is at the Air Canada Centre quite often, so I have many chances to gab with him during the season. But, the other three visit only occasionally. Though Salming has the wrinkled face of a 70-year-old, he still possesses the wiry, no-fat build from his playing days. McDonald’s face remains mostly shrouded by that animal on his upper lip, and the Tiger still throws punches whenever we meet.
Williams’ most prominent feature is the subject of the best line I’ve ever read from a hockey writer. Sometime in the mid-‘70s, Toronto Star legend Frank Orr wrote that “Williams’ nose is so flat, he could bite a wall.” What an entirely apt description.
The Leafs now head to western Canada for a highly anticipated three-game road trip that begins Tuesday night in Calgary. Just a reminder, I am taking questions at my e-mail site –
[email protected] – for a Q&A blog I’ll respond to early in the week from Alberta. Please remember to include your name and the city you are writing from.