By Damian Cristodero, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, March 19, 2011
OTTAWA — The sizzling shot Dwayne Roloson took off his left collarbone Thursday against the Canadiens left a healthy bruise. But the Lightning goaltender said it likely would have been worse if not for a padded shirt he wore under his normal gear.
"Thankfully, we have those shirts," Roloson said, "because (the shot) would have done some damage if we didn't have that extra padding."
So shock resistant is the material, head equipment manager Ray Thill said, it can protect a hand from a full-on blow from a hammer.
"Want to try?" Thill said. "They demonstrate it all the time."
Roloson said he has worn the shirts, not standard issue to goalies, since he played for the Oilers from 2006-09. He hadn't replaced them in several years, so Thill ordered new ones from a company that uses a shock-absorbing material that feels like a spongy plastic and is called a viscoelastic polymer.
The shirts are custom-made, and Roloson also has extra padding for his arms and rib cage.
Even so, Roloson dropped to the ice when P.K. Subban's shot crashed into his collarbone. Roloson stayed in the game and played Saturday.
"Any time you get hit in the bone, it's bad," Roloson said. "It's calmed down. It's just one of those bruises. It's part of the game. You always get bruises. You always get little nicks."
FURTHER REVIEW: One of Steve Yzerman's suggestions at last week's general managers meetings in Boca Raton was to review every goal.
Spurred by Vinny Lecavalier's erroneously disallowed goal during a March 7 shootout loss to the Capitals — a goaltender interference call not reviewable under current rules, which allow review only to check if a puck crossed the goal line — Yzerman said the lead-up to goals should be examined as well.
"But how far do we go back?" Yzerman said. "Do we go two seconds back from the goal? Can we go 30 seconds back? What if the play is offsides? Do we say it doesn't count? So there's a lot that has to go into it." The constant, Yzerman said: "Let's go upstairs and get the calls right."
REST: LW Simon Gagne joined the team from Montreal, where he had a followup procedure for a nerve injury in his neck that kept him out of 18 games in October and November.
Coach Guy Boucher said he expected Gagne for Friday's game with the Hurricanes, or perhaps earlier, Tuesday against the Islanders.
"We could have done it later," Boucher said of the procedure, "but that would be close to the playoffs, and we wanted to give ourselves a little bit of time. We want to win every game, but we want our guys healthy, even if we have to sit some guys down in the short term."
HEALING: W Ryan Malone, in another step in his recovery from a mid-body injury that has kept him out of 17 games, skated in line rushes at the morning skate, though he wore a red jersey. Malone is expected back in the lineup around the beginning of April, Boucher said.
ODDS AND ENDS: With AHL Norfolk G Dustin Tokarski day-to-day with a lower-body injury, Jaroslav Janus was re-assigned from ECHL Florida. … D Matt Smaby was scratched.