The Devils’ medical list keeps lengthening. They’re hopeful the right-eye injury Colin White suffered in practice yesterday doesn’t prove more serious than a massive shiner.
“We don’t feel that anything’s structurally damaged,” GM Lou Lamoriello said. “His right eye closed up.”
White was hurried off the ice after being struck on the eye, holding a towel to his face, and Lamoriello said the defenseman underwent multiple examinations. The Devils already had Jamie Langenbrunner and Cam Janssen on the injured roster, and upcoming surgery was confirmed yesterday for each.
Langenbrunner underwent examination yesterday in Montreal, and Lamoriello said surgery will be performed there to repair the forward’s groin injury. Lamoriello said the diagnosis was that the injury is not a sports hernia.
Janssen will require surgical repair on his separated right shoulder. The forward missed 11 games last season with a dislocation of that shoulder, and reinjured it in two fights during Monday’s exhibition opener, a 3-2 loss to the Flyers in Trenton. Lamoriello said Janssen’s surgery will be delayed until the swelling goes down.
Though Janssen does not blame the NHL’s new jerseys for his shoulder injury, other Devils said they are concerned the stretchy, streamlined sweaters played a significant role in the poundings Janssen suffered and fear they can lead to major injuries.
They’ll be donning those newfangled jerseys again tonight when they face the Bruins in Manchester, N.H., and at the Garden tomorrow against the Rangers.
Janssen twice lost bouts to Flyer Jesse Boulerice, each after Boulerice pulled Janssen’s jersey over the Devil’s head and flailed away.
“I’ve seen Janssen fight quite a bit and I’ve never seen that,” said Mike Rupp, among the other combatants that night. “It’s still early to know, but if it is a problem, somebody could be hurt very, very badly. It could be an eye.”
The old tactic of immobilizing and blinding a foe by pulling his jersey over his head had been minimized by the mandated tie-downs on the inside back of the previous jerseys. They didn’t work Monday.
Arron Asham said the jerseys are coming apart, literally, at the seams.
“They seem to be ripping right from the shoulders back. The tie-downs are too long, as well,” said Asham, who also fought in that exhibition opener. “Hopefully they can look at it and fix the problem before anyone else gets hurt.
“It probably had something to do with it. You don’t want other guys going down with serious injuries because of the jerseys. I’ve seen a few of them rip now, so . . . mine ripped. Our jerseys are so tight, if someone grabs them, they’re bound to rip.”
Lamoriello, who wasn’t a fan of the fashion makeover to begin with, said, “I’m looking into it.”