Former Canadien James Wisniewski (centre) during the Columbus Blue Jackets’ morning skate at the Bell Centre on Tuesday.
Stubbs video capture
Columbus defenceman James Wisniewski is intimately aware of what Habs rearguard Andrei Markov is going through as he rehabilitates a second ACL reconstruction.
Wisniewski, who played 43 games for the Habs last season, has had three ACL reconstructions. Wiz was brought in through trade with the New York Islanders to fill in for the ailing Markov, then signed with Columbus as a UFA on July 1, a staggering six-year, $33-million contract.
The veteran said after Tuesday’s morning skate that it’s the mental side of rehabbing from two ACL rebuilds that’s probably hardest on Markov. Wiz had two ACL surgeries at age 23 and 24, injuries suffered 14 months apart. He had had another at age 18, tearing the ligament while playing for the U.S. in the under-18 world championship.
The rehab, he said of his own program and surely something close to that prescribed for Markov, “is gruelling. You know you’re going to feel better, then worse, then start (to improve). You want to do more but you can’t. It’s a waiting game. It’s a chess game, not checkers. It’s about getting the blood supply to the new ACL and that takes time.
“It was devastating … traumatic,” he added of having blown out the same knee twice in 14 months. “It was the mental grind, knowing I had six months of the same rehab.”
Full column is coming on Wisniewski, who returns to the Bell Centre Tuesday night for the first time since he left the Canadiens.
Here’s an interesting animation of how an ACL reconstruction can be done:
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After seeing that its a wonder that knee can do anything….
I liked when had Wiz on our team while he was here and would like to have kept him but not at the price he got as a UFA. Wayy to much especailly with Carey needing a long term deal, patches, subban etc.
Saku you’ll always be #1
It all comes down to bang for the buck doesn’t it? James had fit in well I thought, brought a complementary skill set to the team, and if we could have had him at the right price he would have stayed here.
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How about it NHL? No fighting, just hockey?
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.com/
Tommy Pyatt scored a nice goal for T Bay last night!
“May you live in interesting times.”
Mark your calendars!
Maybe Markov sometime?
..
The wiz has the same amount of points at Kostitsyn – not bad for a D-man.
He plays about 10 minutes more per game also, gets all the PP time..
Maybe Markov sometime?
Considering he was suspended the first eight games of the season, proves his value over a Markov who wont likely even play this year, maybe even ever again
Habs suck against teams they should beat (Islanders, Ducks, Oilers the past 2 years, Columbus 0-3 last year).
My prediction is that they will continue on that stride. Although I hope they come out with the 2 points, I find it hard to be optimistic.
Wiz pots one tonight. So do Pacioretty and Subban (he’s due)
Yeah the dux, typical script. Wouldnt it be nice if sometimes things were so god-damn predictable.
Go Wiz. It’s going to be good seeing him again tonight. Too bad he’s in the wrong uniform.
Come for Habs, Stay for Weird
http://www.puckbandits.com
Need some help understanding this new allignment stuff…..
Are the playoffs 5 game series in the first 2 rounds now? Heard this today at work , didnt make sense to me. Buttman is about the $$ so less games seems odd.
Not a chance, they’d sooner make best-of-nines.
Ha ! This is true…thx Ash
I’m guessing the reasoning behind pushing the Tootoo decision off one day was to wait until after the realignment announcement was made. (Look at the background of Shanny’s video; I’m guessing it’s the press backdrop at the GMs meeting)
People aren’t really talking as much about it, so I guess it worked.
It’s probably the least convincing video Shanny’s made yet. The replay is manipulated to make it look like Tootoo had way more time to change course. Shanny cites the point when Tootoo lost the puck and looked up, and then argues this was well enough in advance of reaching Miller. Compare the distance from that point to Miller and the distance between Campoli and Malone when Campoli lost the puck, and you’ll notice the latter is the greater distance by far. And yet Shanny argued Malone hadn’t the time to avoid contact.
The explanation at the end about how jumping made it worse was sketchy. I guess Shanny didn’t take high school physics and so doesn’t realize how much more momentum would have transferred into Miller had Tootoo stayed planted.
I think the play maybe deserved a game or two, but the video just reeked of ‘lets try to make this look as bad as possible so we don’t look like idiots about the Lucic hit’. It was an intentionally uncharitable interpretation. That plus the strategy of sneaking the decision in while the limelight is stolen by realignment talk: rather disgusting.
Good points. Shanahan is inexperienced and way too inconsistent. Don’t trust his decision-making ability for the future.
“May you live in interesting times.”
I nominate Mathieu Darche to replace Shanahan. I believe someone with an educated brain needs to be in that position.
Shanahan is completely unqualified for what he’s doing. It’s a shame he’s sullying what was a decent reputation in this charade as the league’s “disciplinarian”. Do you think he and Buttman exchange high fives every time they have one of these incidents? I think they love the brawl and media attention they get from it.
This ruling all but comes with an admission by Mr. Shanahan that he’d like a mulligan on the Milan Lucic ruling.
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How about it NHL? No fighting, just hockey?
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.com/
To maksimir, if Gomez is the second worst trade, which one is the first one? Patrick Roy?
I think that goes without asking. We traded away a Hall of Famer in the prime of his career at the most important position on the ice for absolutely nothing.
I will never forget Réjean Houle’s smug face as he explained the trade after it was completed. He had obstinately insisted for Jocelyn Thibault to be the goalie included in the deal, he crowed, as if that was a a big win for us. That jackass ended up throwing in Mike Keane as well.
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How about it NHL? No fighting, just hockey?
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.com/
Second worst was getting Dr. Recchi for Desjardin, Leclair, and Baby Dionne.
“May you live in interesting times.”
Ribeiro for Niinima anyone?
Yeah but Ribeiro would never be a star here.
I never liked Ribs. He is a punk
It doesn’t enter this conversation. It’s a bad trade, we sent away a serviceable #2 centre and got nothing in return, but it wasn’t in the same ballpark as giving away St. Patrick.
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How about it NHL? No fighting, just hockey?
http://relentlessineptitude.blogspot.com/
Nobody beats the Wiz.
I miss him. Too bad he was too expensive for our limited pocketbook – drained by the largest black hole in Habs history.
Tonight’s game should be an easy two points which is why it won’t be.
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“Hey Richard, two minutes for looking so good!”
I know months in the NHL feels like decades in the outside world but I do remember people being excited about the Blue Jackets this year, with the combo Carter – Nash that was supposed to dominate.
Boy, did that turn out different…
When they were still optimistic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btijydrkLLk
LOL at 00:17 when a chair noise sounded like Wiz let out a big one.
lol Wisniewski: “It’s a chess game, not checkers”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gafALL-R1nI
lol
also.; i gotta see this movie again
Always liked Wiz, he was a stand up guy for us. It would have cost us way too much dough to keep him. Hope he doesn’t burn us tonight.
Ok, I am seriously woozy from that video, i need to put my head on my desk. Can you imagine sitting in that chair while it moves your leg, ALL DAY. I would go crazy!
Not to mention the 23 hours of continuos leg movement afterward.
GO HABS GO!!!
I wish Wiz had stayed in Mtl but he isn’t worth that much money. He had a lot of defensive lapses when looking to sneak in goals. Mind you I know the money they paid Markov hasn’t exactly gotten much on the return either. Then again, if it wasn’t for Gomez they could have had Wiz and Markov and still had money left in the penny jar. Oh Gainey… you really blew that one big time. Second worse trade in Montreal history I think.
Wow that surgery looks brutal.
I like Wiz. He’s a good guy and you can’t fault him for taking that contract with the Jackets. When you’ve bounced around to 4 clubs in your first 6 years in the NHL, stability is a welcome change. I wish him well in a losing cause tonight.
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GO HABS GO! 2011-12 is our year!
I don´t know. He probably could have easily signed a five-year 20m+ contract at a much better team and place than Columbus. Would have respected that much more. He just went for the money. If you get 4m or 6m a year over five or six years, well the difference has no real impact on your life. The Stanley Cup on the other hand you can´t win with the Blue Jackets…
2 Mil a year diff would have an impact on my lifestyle – I can tell you that!
Hahaha, on mine too but we unfortunately both don´t already make 4m a year, right?
Where that extra $2mill really makes a difference is 20 years from now…
Maybe, maybe not. A lot can happen in 20 years… I think the Red Wings were interested in him too. A possible Stanley Cup ring 20 years from now would certainly make a big difference to me.
He can still get traded. On paper Columbus should be a lot better than they are (sound familiar lol)