Rafalski questionable tonight with flu

[jollymania 162]

no, that kinda makes my point, that you can play w/ a seperation. So then the only issue becomes relative importance of the game as the motivator to play/sit.

On that note, you never know how important these games are. Each could be an elimination game as terminal to a season as SCF game 7 loss if we miss the playoffs come Apr. The points count the same in DEC as they do in MAR.

And you are typically most contagious in passing on the flu in the 12 hours before you are syptomatic, so the damage Rafa could do has likely been done

still he woudln't be 100%, better just to rest him especially at his age, flu + hockey is a lot tougher to deal with than flu + football where your sitting on the bench or resting in between plays a majority of the time

[MSMarine 0]

your jsut making stuff up for who knows what reason to try to bash Rafalski, and your using a terrible argument considering hockey players are tougher than football players

Sigh...

I'm no bashing anyone... I started my involvement in this thread by stating this wasn't any player, team... But lamenting the general acceptance of players now not playing sick/hurt. This is freaking hockey, after all, the damn warrior sport, and it's sad that it's now become as bad or even worse than other sports with regards to nursing.

[stuck in socal 56]

Flu also makes people delirious so regardless if he wsa physically up to the challenge he would probably make a lot of bone-headed mistakes, but then again he has been doing that a lot lately this year. .

[jollymania 162]

Sigh...

I'm no bashing anyone... I started my involvement in this thread by stating this wasn't any player, team... But lamenting the general acceptance of players now not playing sick/hurt. This is freaking hockey, after all, the damn warrior sport, and it's sad that it's now become as bad or even worse than other sports with regards to nursing.

If they want to keep him of fthe ice with the flu because he can't perform 100% theres nothing wrong with that. And the NHL regular season is all about nursing yourself for the brutal post season, and on top of that the reg nhl season is far more of a grind than any other sports, i mean think of boyle playing over 30 mins a night of hockey for 82 games, compare that to other sports like football where they play like 3 min in action of a game playing one simple position and only have like 17 games with whole weeks in between. Basketball challenges your cardio like hockey but no contact makes it a breeze compared to hockey, theres no wonder certain things hockey teams don't take chances with in the regular season.

[Crashnburnluder 385]

It sucks ralfi is out again for flu, but atleast we get another look at Kindl... NHL power play said they recalled Kindl incase Ralfi does have to sit..

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

And you are typically most contagious in passing on the flu in the 12 hours before you are syptomatic, so the damage Rafa could do has likely been done

That isn't true at all. You can be contagious for up to 7 days after you begin to show symptoms.

[PrairieDawg 52]

Hope Kindl is ready to go tonight, getting called up the day of the game? Missing morning skate while traveling to Detroit. Jeez.

Edited December 23, 2009 by PrairieDawg

[Theophany 110]

Sigh...

I'm no bashing anyone... I started my involvement in this thread by stating this wasn't any player, team... But lamenting the general acceptance of players now not playing sick/hurt. This is freaking hockey, after all, the damn warrior sport, and it's sad that it's now become as bad or even worse than other sports with regards to nursing.

Yeah, somehow I don't think other sports would let plays play (or the players wouldn't even want to play) with a torn sack, or whatever Lidstrom had done to him.

He missed TWO GAMES when someone inflicted serious harm to his TESTICLES. I would be done for life at that point.

Say what you want about hockey, but these guys aren't *******.

[Guest micah]

LOL. I don't want to threadjack, but go ahead and tell me all about Steve Yzerman's commitment to conditioning. He was a great player - but unlike Payton, he was never the best in the world at his position. Unlike Payton, he was never known for his gruelling workouts that left younger teammates vomiting and begging for mercy, unlike Payton, he was not chisseled fromstone, and depite his lack of size the most physicaly punishing player at his position in the game. Steve Yzerman is one of my heroes, I would never take a thing away from him. He was a skilled player and a great leader and was pretty durable - but an ironman of the Walter Payton sort he was not.

[cjm502 165]

LOL. I don't want to threadjack, but go ahead and tell me all about Steve Yzerman's commitment to conditioning. He was a great player - but unlike Payton, he was never the best in the world at his position. Unlike Payton, he was never known for his gruelling workouts that left younger teammates vomiting and begging for mercy, unlike Payton, he was not chisseled fromstone, and depite his lack of size the most physicaly punishing player at his position in the game. Steve Yzerman is one of my heroes, I would never take a thing away from him. He was a skilled player and a great leader and was pretty durable - but an ironman of the Walter Payton sort he was not.

Are you aware of how bad that mans knees were? There were days where he had trouble walking, than he would go play a hockey game and still be our best player. Absolutely insane.

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

LOL. I don't want to threadjack, but go ahead and tell me all about Steve Yzerman's commitment to conditioning. He was a great player - but unlike Payton, he was never the best in the world at his position. Unlike Payton, he was never known for his gruelling workouts that left younger teammates vomiting and begging for mercy, unlike Payton, he was not chisseled fromstone, and depite his lack of size the most physicaly punishing player at his position in the game. Steve Yzerman is one of my heroes, I would never take a thing away from him. He was a skilled player and a great leader and was pretty durable - but an ironman of the Walter Payton sort he was not.

I would consider the conditioning regimen for football to be much different than that of hockey.

But we aren't talking about conditioning. We are talking about durability. The whole "do what it takes to win" mentality, no? Payton played a great game with the stomach flu. Yzerman had a great series with an injured knee. Personally I would consider Yzerman's durability over 23 games while playing with his injuried knee to be better than Payton's record-setting game with the stomach flu. Agree to disagree, but I have merit for my opinion.

[bonan78 1]

LOL. I don't want to threadjack, but go ahead and tell me all about Steve Yzerman's commitment to conditioning. He was a great player - but unlike Payton, he was never the best in the world at his position. Unlike Payton, he was never known for his gruelling workouts that left younger teammates vomiting and begging for mercy, unlike Payton, he was not chisseled fromstone, and depite his lack of size the most physicaly punishing player at his position in the game. Steve Yzerman is one of my heroes, I would never take a thing away from him. He was a skilled player and a great leader and was pretty durable - but an ironman of the Walter Payton sort he was not.

I'm pretty sure that the poster who put Stevie Y's picture up was referring to the fact that he played something like 9 or 10 YEARS with a torn ligament in his knee, and during the '02 season/playoffs, he was in such obvious pain that he was required to lean on his stick to pick himself up off the ice. Now if you want a hockey player to compare to Payton in terms of conditioning, Chelios comes to mind, more of an Ironman, still playing well into his late 40's, and was well known for outpacing teammates 10-15 years his junior in the gym.

[jollymania 162]

I would consider the conditioning regimen for football to be much different than that of hockey.

But we aren't talking about conditioning. We are talking about durability. The whole "do what it takes to win" mentality, no? Payton played a great game with the stomach flu. Yzerman had a great series with an injured knee. Personally I would consider Yzerman's durability over 23 games while playing with his injuried knee to be better than Payton's record-setting game with the stomach flu. Agree to disagree, but I have merit for my opinion.

Exactly, there are amazing feats in all sports, but the grind of hockey is something far more distinct and grueling than other sports.

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

Exactly, there are amazing feats in all sports, but the grind of hockey is something far more distinct and grueling than other sports.

My main point was I thought Yzerman's struggles through the long span of 23 games was more significant than Payton's struggles through a single game.

[Guest micah]

I would consider the conditioning regimen for football to be much different than that of hockey.

But we aren't talking about conditioning. We are talking about durability. The whole "do what it takes to win" mentality, no? Payton played a great game with the stomach flu. Yzerman had a great series with an injured knee. Personally I would consider Yzerman's durability over 23 games while playing with his injuried knee to be better than Payton's record-setting game with the stomach flu. Agree to disagree, but I have merit for my opinion.

Actually, yes, we are talking about conditioning, at least partially. This was part of my quote which you responded to:

I suspect Walter Payton was tougher and more dedicated to conditioning than any current Red Wing, heck, any current NHLer or NFLer.

I never heard of anyone saying that after practce, Yzerman took them out and worked with them until they cried, then kep on going after they all quit. Cheli perhaps, but Yzerman was not known for his late nights running hills.

Durability wise it might be a wash - though Payton missed a much lower % of games he was eligible for than Yzerman did.

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

Actually, yes, we are talking about conditioning, at least partially. This was part of my quote which you responded to: I never heard of anyone saying that after practce, Yzerman took them out and worked with them until they cried, then kep on going after they all quit. Cheli perhaps, but Yzerman was not known for his late nights running hills.

Durability wise it might be a wash - though Payton missed a much lower % of games he was eligible for than Yzerman did.

Payton didn't have a knee injury like Yzerman did, and didn't play with said knee injury to the point where he had to go through 6 months of rehab for it.

And when I said "I've seen better" I was talking about Payton's game with the stomach flu.

Also regarding Yzerman's injuries and conditioning:

By far the most remarkable performance of Yzerman's career came in 2001-2002, when he led the Red Wings to their third Stanley Cup championship during his tenure as captain. Over the years the veteran center's knees had taken a beating, and an MRI taken after he played for Canada's hockey team in the 2002 Winter Olympics revealed there was virtually no cartilage left in his right knee. For the remainder of the regular season and into the playoffs, Yzerman was forced to play with severe pain. Of Yzerman's ability to play through that pain, Red Wings trainer John Wharton told ESPN magazine: "His pain tolerance - I cannot fathom it. I wonder if his nervous system is different than the rest of us."

On August 2, 2002, less than two months after leading the Red Wings to their third Stanley Cup title in six years, Yzerman underwent an osteotomy, or realignment of the knee. The operation was designed to remedy the acute arthritic condition of his right knee, a condition rarely seen in someone so young. Even Yzerman's knee surgeon, Pete Fowler of London, Ontario, was astounded at the hockey player's rebound from surgery. "I don't know of a pro athlete who has had an osteotomy," Fowler told Ryan Pyette, sports reporter for the London Free Press. "I certainly don't know of a pro athlete who has had an osteotomy while they were still a pro athlete. We didn't do it (the surgery) so Steve could return to hockey. We did it so Steve could return to walking without pain and for day-to-day activities."

Most importantly, Yzerman's comeback meant a return to the tough practice sessions he'd instituted as team captain. On February 20, 2003, Red Wings coach Dave Lewis handed the team over to Yzerman at the end of the Wings' regular practice session. Although Yzerman could have let the team rest up for the next night's game, he decided instead to subject his teammates to a sprint session. As Lewis told Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post, "We had already had a full practice, but Stevie skated them hard, and we ended up having pretty good success the next night. That's just one little example of what Stevie Yzerman means to this team. He demands and commands as much of his team as he commands and demands of himself. And Stevie has pretty high standards."

http://www.answers.com/topic/steve-yzerman-1

Edited December 23, 2009 by Doc Holliday

[Guest micah]

Payton didn't have a knee injury like Yzerman did, and didn't play with said knee injury to the point where he had to go through 6 months of rehab for it.

Right, thankfully, Payton's superior conditioning protected his knee, unlike fellow Bear greats Butkus and Sayers who played through agony similar to Yzerman's:)

I'm just joshin you (mostly), Yzerman was certainly impressive. Obviously not Payton imprerssive, but certainly noting to snuff at.

[jollymania 162]

Right, thankfully, Payton's superior conditioning protected his knee, unlike fellow Bear greats Butkus and Sayers who played through agony similar to Yzerman's:)

I'm just joshin you (mostly), Yzerman was certainly impressive. Obviously not Payton imprerssive, but certainly noting to snuff at.

no, anything done in hockey is far more impressive, and if you want the be all end all of toughness look at Malarchuk, if you want the pissing match to finally end.

[GMRwings1983 8,804]

We should blames this entire loss on Rafalski for having the flu.

Questionable = out with this lineup.