Komisarek down for the count this season
February 4th, 2010 | by jays1992 |
There are several ways to look at the aftermath of Mike Komisarek’s first season in Toronto.
We can look back at what preceded his signing on for five years at an annual cap hit of $4.5 Million per year.
He was badly beaten in a fight by Bruin tough guy Milan Lucic and obviously injured his right shoulder during the fracas.
That fact was lost in that one-sided battle.
Shouldn’t the Leafs’ medical staff have been aware of that lingering issue?
Subsequently, we have learned that Komisarek has not recovered from that injury, to date, and instead, he tried to play through it. That decision has been reconsidered largely due the growing obvious reality that his play has been sub-standard all season.
Now we know why.
Still this inauspicious debut has cast doubt on him as well as cost him a chance to compete for the USA in the upcoming Olympic Games.
Hopefully, by going under the knife now, he has a chance to go to camp next year at full strength and make a more representative impact, in terms of his and the Leaf management’s expectations of him.
On the plus side, Komisarek’s injury status will allow the Leafs to qualify a chunk of his contract for the NHL’s Long Term Injury Replacement, which means that the Leafs can add that prorated capacity to their unused cap space.
It may allow them to take on a fat, possibly unwanted contract from a rival club, which the Leafs can take on like they did last year when they aquired a draft pick from the Caps last season for relieving them of two expiring contracts.
In the meantime, the younger Leaf blueliners, Carl Gunnarsson and Luke Schenn will benefit from an increased workload. That should really help both of them.
Schenn has only recently started to look like he did during an impressive campaign and the added work should help him fully regain his confidence.
Gunnarsson has been a real find this season and his baptism under fire with serve to cement a spot for him on next year’s roster.
