Shoulder injury KO's Regin again

"Regin missed the first two games of the regular season after getting injured Sept. 27 against the Maple Leafs. He took extra time to make sure he was healed and his teammates know this injury isn’t going to be easy on him.

“That sucks for him and for the team as well,” said defenceman Erik Karlsson. “He’s played great and he’s gotten going again. (The latest injury) doesn’t help. I don’t know how bad it is, but it’s definitely hurting the team and hurting him as well.”

MacLean said this isn’t easy for Regin.

“I haven’t had an opportunity to speak with him, but everything I’ve heard from (athletic therapist) Gerry (Townend) he’s pretty down. Those were his words for it and it’s only natural,” said MacLean."

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Local Athletic Therapists Gloating Working for the Jets

"Four athletic therapists from Manitoba have landed their dream job by working with the Winnipeg Jets.

Having the best seats in the house, the team’s training staff tends to any injuries players may experience on the ice, and helps keep the athletes in top physical condition all season long.

“Growing up in Manitoba, there was no better feeling standing on the Winnipeg Jets bench in front of 15,000+ emotionally charged fans,” said head athletic therapist Rob Milette. “It was electric in there I will remember that vividly for the rest of my life.”

October 9 was a special day for everyone on the team, as the reborn hockey club made their first real debut of the regular season.

Fellow athletic therapist Brad Shaw moved back to the province after working with the Kootenay Ice in the Canadian Hockey League.

“The atmosphere was something you can’t begin to explain and to be a part of it was pretty surreal,” Shaw said, reflecting on the home opener.

It wasn’t a huge adjustment for the guys, who were all formally part of the Manitoba Moose organization, but a move into the NHL was nothing to scoff at. The staff — all members of the Manitoba Athletic Therapists Association — have since settled into their offices at the MTS Iceplex."

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Montreal Canadiens: 'We need to stick to game plan,' Subban says

"There was some good news on the injury front, although the Canadiens are still waiting for defenceman Andrei Markov to return from Florida where he is rehabbing under the watchful eye of Dr. James Andrews and Canadiens athletic therapist Nick Addey-Jibb."

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Cammy's cut leaves Habs short

"Cammalleri's left leg was cut between the top of his shinpad and the bottom of his pants when the skate of teammate Yannick Weber sliced across it during the game against the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre.

When he got to the bench, Canadiens head athletic therapist Graham Rynbend wanted to get Cammalleri to the dressing room. Only problem was, at the MTS Centre players leave the ice through the Zamboni entrance.

And the Jets were on a power play.

"The ref is there and I'm like, 'You've got to stop the play.' I know there's a power play and I'm not panicking to the point where I don't know what's going on. In this scenario you would be kicking yourself if you didn't yell at the ref and something serious happened and you needed the medical attention. I'm yelling, 'You've to stop the play, man, I've got to get off. I'm pouring here.' Seconds later, by the time I got off, there was a lot of blood. It was a little scary.

"How much blood can you lose? I've seen too many war movies where guys get sliced."

Cammalleri got sewed up -- "a lot," he replied when asked how many stitches -- and could be out for up to two weeks."

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Howden Headed Back To MJ

"Howden suffered his injury back on September 13th in a rookie game between Florida and the Nashville Predators. Millar says upon his arrival back in Moose Jaw, Quinton's status is a question mark.

"Quinton saw the doctor in Florida Tuesday morning before he left Florida, we're getting those updates from Florida as we go here. Curtis Amiot (Warriors Athletic Therapist) and our doctors will do a review in sequence when he get's here. Our understanding is that he's a question mark for this weekend."

Millar added that until they gather all information and evaluate the injury, Howden will be listed as day to day."

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Senators jobbed by schedule vs. Leafs

"Zenon Konopka has missed two days of on-ice work because of his back problem, but he did take part in Tuesday’s morning skate and hopes to play Thursday in Boston. At the same time, he’ll follow the doctor’s orders — or at least those of head athletic therapist Gerry Townend. “We have a really good training staff here, the best I’ve ever been a part of,” said Konopka. “They went in-depth with every injury I’ve ever had. I have all the faith in the world in them.”"

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Gagner injures left ankle after getting hit by puck

"Gagner injured his ankle when Calgary Flames defenceman Brendan Mikkelson rode the forward into the wall on Gagner’s seventh shift of the night.

At the time, it looked like Gagner may have also hit his head on the boards because he was down for a couple of minutes as trainer T.D. Forss came out to see him, but the Oilers dismissed that.


He’s out day-to-day."

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Jets name operations, training staff

"Rob Milette, who was the head athletic therapist for the Moose, will continue in that role for the Jets, and he will be assisted by Brad Shaw and Lee Stubbs, who will also do strength and conditioning."

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Eagles athletic therapist moving up

"Much is said and written about players developing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and moving on to new challenges in professional hockey. Sometimes we hear of coaches doing the same thing. The Cape Breton Screaming Eagles announced Thursday that Athletic Therapist and Equipment Manager Alain Chabbert is the latest to make the move.

Chabbert has accepted a position with the Winnipeg Jets organization. He will join the Jets American Hockey League affiliate in St. John’s, Newfoundland as that team’s new Athletic Therapist effective immediately.

Originally from Winnipeg, Chabbert spent the past three seasons with the Screaming Eagles after graduating from the University of Manitoba.

“Alain did an excellent job for the Screaming Eagles”, President Paul MacDonald said.”He carried out his duties in an extremely professional manner and was a pleasure to work with. Although we’ll certainly miss him we are thrilled that he is moving onto the next level.”"

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Shaw joins Jets in didn't-dare-dream job

"If Winnipeg can hardly believe that it got its NHL Jets back after 15 years, imagine how Brad Shaw feels."
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"Shaw was notified early in the process that he would be considered for a job with the new Winnipeg club, even when the Phoenix Coyotes were potentially going to be the franchise to move back north.

"When they did secure the team, there was a very short interview process with two or three candidates they thought they would be comfortable with, and I came out with it."

Ice general manager Jeff Chynoweth said he couldn't be happier for Shaw, whom he had hired sight unseen four summers ago.

"It doesn't surprise me that Brad Shaw has reached the NHL this quickly. He's great at what he does and, more importantly, he's a better person," said Chynoweth."

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Island connection enjoying the ride with Canucks

"Dave Zarn, Canucks assistant athletic trainer after three seasons as head athletic therapist and strength and conditioning coach for the Victoria Salmon Kings of the ECHL, would also get his name etched on the Cup if Vancouver prevails over the Boston Bruins.

"This is unreal to be in the Stanley Cup final in only my second year in the league," said Zarn, by telephone from Boston.

"This doesn't happen to a lot of people. But we're only halfway there. The Bruins are not going quietly. But we can feel the whole province behind us. We always knew this was B.C.'s team but that has been taken to a whole other level this spring."

O'Neill and Zarn are among several Island-produced people working behind the scenes in the Canucks' run to a potential first Stanley Cup in 40 years."

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Fraser: How do officials stay in play but out of the way?

"The puck took a quick rise off Tony's stick and I just missed blocking it with my elbow before it struck me directly in the face. The puck broke my nose, fractured my tooth and split my lip for seven stitches.

When I blew the whistle, blood sprayed out of the air hole. Ron Francis of the Pens displayed a look of shock as he caught a glimpse of me. I couldn't continue in this condition and Hawks athletic therapist Mike Gapski escorted me off the ice for repairs. Walking through the Hawk bench, I paused and informed coach Darryl Sutter that we had to stop the game while I got stitched up. Sutter shook his head in disgust and said "F%&*# Kerry, hurry up and get back. We're pressing.""

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Boogaard always a favourite in Minnesota

"“He was the perfect fit here,’’ Wild athletic therapist Don Fuller said. “It can be seen by how much the fans loved him.

“The fans also loved him because of what he did off the ice. He was such a giving person, whether it was with the children’s hospital or the military. I knew that he did a fair amount of stuff, but it wasn’t until after his passing that I realized how much charitable work he did do. It’s commendable for him, and it speaks volumes about how big a heart he had.’’"

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Lucic’s thoughtless moment means Game 7

"“I didn’t see [Lucic] coming from behind,” Spacek said. “At the last moment, I thought he’d hit me. I tried to protect myself a bit. I feel OK. I was talking to [athletic therapist Graham Rynbend] right away.”

Lucic picked his way around Spacek to take a brief seat in the penalty box before he was shown off the rink. But from the dressing room, he surely heard the roar of the crowd 71 seconds after he’d been banished."

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Markov's agent steers clear of contract rumour

"Markov has been back on skates this week at the team’s training facility in Brossard, working out lightly under the guidance of the team’s head athletic therapist, Graham Rynbend.

It’s the latest step in the defenceman’s second rehabilitation stint from major surgery to the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee.

Markov was knocked out of last season’s playoffs in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals in Pittsburgh, falling awkwardly into the boards when checked by the Penguins’ Matt Cooke. Surgery by orthopedist Tony Miniaci followed on May 5 in Cleveland, which led to summer-long rehab.

Then, freakishly, Markov wrecked the knee again on Nov. 13, just 11 games into the season and only seven games after he’d returned to action, catching his skate in a Bell Centre rut while jostling for the puck with Carolina’s Eric Staal.

Markov was operated on Dec. 8, this time by James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala., and has been working his way back toward the ice the past three months.

“Of course I’m not going to be the same. I’m going to be better,” Markov told reporters on Jan. 14, meeting reporters in the Canadiens’ Brossard dressing room for the first and only time since his second surgery.""

Oilers' Foster day-to-day

""I remember Legwand giving me a push and slamming my head off the boards pretty good,” Foster said. “I sort of realized what was going on when (athletic therapist) T.D. (Forss) was beside me and telling me to open my eyes. He asked me if I knew where I was and I knew where I was and what the score was. 

“Lucky enough I didn’t forget any of that stuff. But it was pretty scary and I wasn’t feeling very well that night.” 

It’ll depend on Foster’s progress as when he’ll be able to suit up again. The Oilers host the Calgary Flames on Saturday and the Los Angeles Kings Tuesday. 

“It’s not really up to me,” Foster said. “It’s kind of a day-by-day thing. They kind of tell me what to do. I just deal with the hour in front of me and go from there.”"

Canadiens training staff a well-oiled machine

"It was two weeks ago Tuesday night that Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty was laying face down in front of his team’s bench, unconscious.

Unknown at that moment was that the 22-year-old had suffered a non-displaced fracture of his C4 vertebra and a severe concussion, the result of being driven into a thinly padded, glass-supporting stanchion at the end of the visitors’ bench by Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara.

The sickening check had happened a few strides from Graham Rynbend, who as usual was behind the Canadiens’ bench as the team’s veteran head athletic therapist.

And before Pacioretty’s body had even slid to a stop along the boards, Rynbend was in motion.

In just a few minutes that night, the Canadiens showed why they’re considered to have one of the finest medical units in the NHL."
...
"Rynbend was joined by Dr. David Mulder, the Canadiens’ chief surgeon and head team physician; Drs. Tarek Razek and Kosar Khwaja, trauma specialists at the Montreal General Hospital and assistants to Mulder; Nick Addey-Jibb, Rynbend’s veteran assistant therapist; Dave Campbell and Donald Balmforth, respectively the team’s osteopathy and physiotherapy consultants; Jon Geller, hired a few months ago as a game-night athletic therapist; and Don DelNegro, the Bruins’ longtime athletic trainer who left his bench, without being asked, to offer assistance.

The Canadiens’ diverse medical team responded as though someone had simply thrown a switch, and that wasn’t by accident.

The club has a working arrangement with John Boulay, an athletic therapist/osteopath who teaches a sports first-responder course nationwide, and Gary McHugh, a Quebec paramedic."

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Canadiens athletic therapist Rynbend reaches milestone

"It’s seldom the happy stories that define the career of an athletic therapist, whose most obvious work is done when disaster strikes.

So it is that four catastrophic injuries are the benchmarks for Graham Rynbend, who on Tuesday night at the Bell Centre worked his 1,000th NHL game – all for the Canadiens.

Chronologically: 

• Nov. 20, 1999: Brian Savage is crushed by the Kings’ Ian Laperrière, the open-ice check in Los Angeles fracturing three vertebrae in the forward’s spine. 

• Jan. 29, 2000: Trent McCleary takes a slapshot in the throat during a Bell Centre game, which fractures his larynx and collapses a lung. 

• April 26, 2002: Richard Zednik is destroyed on Montreal ice by an elbow from the Bruins’ Kyle McLaren, resulting in a fractured cheekbone, broken nose and concussion. 

• March 8, 2011: Max Pacioretty is knocked out, severely concussed and suffers a fractured vertebra when slammed into a Bell Centre stanchion by the Bruins’ Zdeno Chara."
...
"So Dave Campbell, currently the Canadiens’ osteopathy consultant under whom Rynbend had done clinic work, got him in with Lefebvre for the Habs’ 1994 training camp."
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"But he’s quick to laud his medical team – assistant Nick Addey-Jibb, his supervisor from a long-ago clinic internship who last week marked his 1,500th game in minor-pro and NHL hockey; osteopath Campbell; physiotherapy consultant Donald Balmforth; and game-night therapist Jon Geller, a newcomer to the staff."

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Athletic Therapist Nick Addey-Jibb marks his 1,500th game in pro hockey

"Tuesday, Montreal Canadiens athletic therapist Nick Addey-Jibb marked his 1,500th game in pro hockey. Addey-Jibb got his start in pro hockey with the Maple Leafs, spending a number of years in St. John’s as the AHL Leafs’ head trainer. One of hockey’s good guys."

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"On Tuesday, Habs athletic therapist Nick Addey-Jibb marked his 1,500th game in pro hockey. He’ll earn his wages Wednesday, and until further notice, in a clinic that’s bursting at the seams."

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Montreal Canadiens Profile

Flames hopeful Langkow can return soon

"Also on the injury front, first-line centre Brendan Morrison is scheduled to meet with the doctor next week to determine the next step for his wounded knee.

“He’s been cleared to skate, but it’s what (athletic therapist) Morris Boyer calls public skating,” Feaster said. “Free to do laps, but no starting and stopping. No pivoting. No turns.”

If Morrison is fitted with a brace, there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to play any time soon."

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