Adrian Dater
Joonas Donskoi doesn’t remember much about it. He knows he had the puck coming up right side, about to enter the New York Rangers’ zone, about to try and generate some offense for the Avalanche in a game at Madison Square Garden.
His memory is dark from there. What happened was, Donskoi took a big hit from Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren, a hit to the head. The rest of the night is mostly a blur, as concussion symptoms quickly set in on the veteran right winger.
Fortunately, the symptoms didn’t last too long. In fact, Donskoi was out there on Sunday morning, practicing in a full-contact, regular jersey with his Avs teammates. While he could play in Monday’s game against Detroit if he had to, the Avs are going to hold him out and allow him to fully rest/heal for what will be a 10-day break for the NHL all-star game.
Donskoi said he feels “normal” again, and is grateful for that. He’s had a previous concussion in his career, and knows of their dangers. The NHL held a hearing with Lindgren over the hit, and most everyone expected some kind of supplemental discipline. But it didn’t happen.
“I was surprised,” Donskoi said. “Everybody saw the hit and there’s different opinions, but it’s tough because I can’t tell you if I saw him, but the contact was to the head in my opinion, that’s for sure.”
Donskoi was able to get back on skates just a few days later, gradually progressing to the point where he can be a normal player – and person – again.
“The days feel long when you’re not playing and not able to participate. You never know how long it’s going to take and it’s never fun, but I’m happy it didn’t take too long to feel better,” said Donskoi, who has 14 goals and 29 points in 44 games for Colorado.
Avs coach Jared Bednar said the “smart” thing to do is to give Donskoi the added time during the break to further rest and heal.
PRACTICE NOTEBOOK