New Jersey Devils Should Play It Safe With Pavel Zacha’s Concussion
By Nick Villano
New Jersey Devils’ rookie Pavel Zacha suffered a concussion Tuesday after taking a hit from Ottawa Senators’ Derrick Brassard. The team should not rush him back.
It’s obviously a different league than it was a decade ago. The NHL treats concussions as major injuries, rather than waiting until a week at best before bringing players back.
That mentality definitely extends the careers of so many players. We’ve seen some of the best (Paul Kariya and Eric Lindros come to mind) lose years on their career because of mismanaged concussions.
For these reasons and more, the Devils need to play it extremely safe with Pavel Zacha.
Andrew Gross of the Record reports that Zacha was diagnosed with a concussion after practice on Thursday. He took a hard hit head-first into the boards against the Senators Tuesday.
Zacha will get back on the ice Friday for a work out. Either way, Gross reports he is out Saturday against the New York Rangers.
The rookie center is a crucial part of the team this season. There is a ton of motivation for head coach John Hynes to think about rushing him back, but he needs to refrain.
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He is only 19 years old. Right now, you could envision Zacha as part of your team for 15 years. He’s shown an ability to put himself in perfect position, especially as of late. If he starts to worry about another concussion because he came back too early, then he may start to play the game differently.
If a player gets a second concussion too quickly, then he has a stigma following him. He could be seen as a hazard if that were to happen.
Zacha finally found his stride after a rough stretch to start the season. He has six goals since January 17th. Obviously a layoff may hurt his momentum, but it would be worth it in the long run.
There isn’t much the team can do this season if they lose against the red-hot New York Rangers on Saturday. That game could officially make them sellers for next week’s Trading Deadine. That makes risking their young center pointless. Zacha should take more time than he needs to make sure he is 100 percent healthy.