Shean Donovan out indefinitely

by DarrenM on Nov 20, 2009 12:42 PM EST Comment 8 comments

Bad news for the Senators, as rugged fourth-line winger Shean Donovan will be out indefinitely with an injured right knee. That's right, the Senators actually tweeted that it was a right knee injury, rather than hiding it as lower body (although it was extremely obvious). Donovan injured it last night when he and Matt Cooke collided knee-on-knee. More information will be coming after further testing, but coach Cory Clouston suggested that Donovan will be out for a long time: "It looks pretty serious. We're not sure what extent - whether it's long term or real long term." Ouch - that does not sound good at all.

Update: Sportsnet is suggesting it might be a season-ending injury. In November. Really terrible news for Donovan's future, as he is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. It's hard to get a new contract when you miss the majority of a season with a serious injury. Hopefully that wasn't Shean's last game in a Senators' sweater -- or any NHL sweater, for that matter.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Shean Donovan	12	1	2	3	0	5	0	0	0	0	12	8.3

As anyone who frequents this blog knows, Peter and I are huge fans of Donovan and the intangibles he brings to this team. Dono's speed and strong forecheck have created numerous opportunities for linemates Chris Kelly and Jarkko Ruutu, and has made that line one of the Senators' most effective. He'll be replaced on Saturday by Peter Regin, who has been a healthy scratch the past two games.

Here's hoping for a speedy recovery from SheanDon.

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I'm coming for you, Cooke

by Jeff Sullivan on Nov 20, 2009 1:05 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

facepalm

Our only options are long-term and really long-term? That’s terrible. And for SheanDon’s future… well, I’d say he’d have a decent chance of staying in Ottawa if it weren’t for our already crowded bottom-six—a bottom six that won’t get less crowded with Foligno, Regin, and Winchester all RFAs and some guys in Bingo looking to get their shot.

I hope he’s back, next year if it can’t be this year.

www.silversevensens.com

by PeterR on Nov 20, 2009 2:11 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Devastating if true

Regin is really going to need to step up. This team is going to miss Donvan’s energy and if he’s out for the year, I don’t even want to think about it. He’s the kind of guy we NEED in the playoffs.

It’s an abortion of NHL justice that Cooke probably won’t be suspended for his hit. He may have ended a guy’s career and he didn’t even get two minutes for it. I hope the next time these teams play, someone caves his face in. I don’t even care if it’s Alfie and he gets ejected for it. it was a classless hit and deserves retribution.

by Mark Parisi on Nov 20, 2009 5:20 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Agree to disagree

Being a loony lefty pacifist and all, I’m going to say that the Sens shouldn’t do anything dirty. No caving in of faces, no getting ejected, etc.

It was a borderline hit, a dirty play as Cooke is apt to do, but there are far worse and there’s no need to sink to his level.

Silver Seven: the Daniel Alfredsson of Ottawa Senators blogs.

by DarrenM on Nov 20, 2009 5:50 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Agree to disagree, too

I want to see him get what’s coming to him. Nothing dirty, but I want Carkner to annihilate him. ANNIHILATE.

www.silversevensens.com

by PeterR on Nov 20, 2009 6:11 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Honestly, I can understand that point of view. What frustrates me is that it’s a dirty play that goes unpunished. Ruutu gets jumped for a clean hit on Hedman but Cooke is going to escape any ramification for a dirty hit? That’s unacceptable in my eyes. The dirty stuff has to be addressed or it will continue. A knee on knee hit should be a 20-game suspension, intentional or not.

by Mark Parisi on Nov 20, 2009 8:32 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

20 games?

That’s a little harsh but that’s a type of hit that needed to get rid of yesterday. Tough to see Donovan, or any player for that matter, get injured on a play like that. Cooke had him in the trolley-tracks and instead of holding up (like Umberger) or go through him (like Ladd) he decided to pull out the knee which is garbage in my opinion.

As much as I dislike concussions an injury to the knee can be just as career threatening. Hopefully Donovan can recover from this and I hope to see him in a Sens jersey sooner than later.

A suspension is warranted but not 20 games. More like 5 games to me, but he’ll get nothing because Collie doesn’t like to suspend players for anything, case in point, Neal only getting 2 games for that vicious retaliatory hit on Dorsett.

It's never about the eventual destination, but rather the long journey and its challenging obstacles that are presented and what it takes to overcome them, that makes the taste of success all the more worthwhile!!!

by hawks61 on Nov 20, 2009 8:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Well, that’s my problem. 2 games isn’t going to deter Neal from making a hit like that again. Punishments have to be deterrents or they have no effect. Pronger goes around throwing elbows because he knows it’s not going to cost him anything — the one game suspension he got for elbowing Holmstrom in 2007 didn’t deter him one bit from doing the same thing to McAmmond. His reward? Getting to skate with the Cup. The suspensions did nothing; just ask Zach Parise .

by Mark Parisi on Nov 20, 2009 9:21 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs