Toronto Maple Leafs confirm ousting of defenseman Carl Gunnarsson with shoulder injury-NHL News
The Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to lose their defenseman, Carl Gunnarsson, for four to six weeks with a separated shoulder and the Swede is also set to miss the world hockey championship for his country this year.
He was hit by Buffalo Sabres’ forward, Marcus Foligno, in their game on Tuesday, April 03, 2012, which they lost in overtime with five to six (5-6) goals margin.
Following the hit, he was taken to the bench on the sidelines and later tests results showed that he had a separated shoulder, which will require him a rather lengthy time period to recovery.
With Maple Leafs already out of the playoff contentions, the player is not going to miss any major part of the current season, except for the last couple of closing games of the regular season.
However, it will certainly be a setback for his home country, Sweden, team who are playing in the world hockey championship, scheduled to be held next month, May 2012.
After confirmation of the injury, Maple Leafs’ coach, Randy Carlyle, said that they expect the player to recover fully in a couple of months and added that it was not going to affect the team’s future.
The Leafs, who were well on the course to win the game against Sabres, lost out on the opportunity in the very last minute.
Leafs’ management is hopeful that Gunnarsson will be able to recover and report his fitness within the stipulated time of about a couple of months.
Gunnarsson himself is also optimistic about his recovery and comeback with the described timeline.
His focus on the rehabilitation is certainly going to be important for him, and with no more games left for his side this season, he has an opportunity to concentrate on his recovery.
Meanwhile, no one around his home country ice hockey team has offered any comments about his latest injury scare and if there were any hopes of earlier than anticipated comeback.
He can avail the opportunity of playing for his country if he is able to recover in less than four weeks. However, given the nature of the injury, it is less likely for the player to be hundred per cent before a month at least.
The situation is expected to be clearer in the next couple of weeks, depending much on the progress he makes during this time.
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