Blackhawks: Broken ankle ends Rozsival's season
If you saw the replay of Michal Rozsival falling to the ice, one time was enough. No need to see it again.
The Blackhawks' veteran defenseman lost his balance about 6½ minutes into the second period of the Hawks' Game 4 victory over Minnesota, and Rozsival's left ankle bent at an awkward angle. He left the ice unable to put any weight on it, and coach Joel Quenneville said it didn't look good.
"You hate to see your teammates in pain like that," Patrick Sharp said.
Friday afternoon, Dr. Michael Terry, Blackhawks head team physician, issued a statement confirming the severity of the injury, a fractured left ankle.
"He will require surgery to repair it. He is not expected to return to full hockey activity until next season," Dr. Terry said.
Rozsival is a veteran of 102 playoff games, including 65 in the last four seasons. He averages about 18 minutes of ice time a game, so now the question is how will the Hawks adjust moving forward?
"It's a loss to lose a guy like Rosi, a veteran guy like that," Duncan Keith said. "We've got a lot of veterans in here that are capable of providing leadership. We've got a lot defensemen who are capable of stepping in there."
Thanks to the sweep of the Wild, which should give the Hawks at least a week to prepare for the Western Conference finals, coach Quenneville and his staff can take their time in deciding the best course of action. The likely candidate to replace Rozsival is David Rundblad. The 24-year-old played in 49 games and was a plus-17 this season.
This injury will test the Hawks' blueline depth and likely mean more minutes for Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Brent Seabrook and Johnny Oduya. Kimmo Timmonen, who just turned 40, will probably get more playing time. He was on the ice for 10 or fewer minutes in three of the four games against the Wild.
Rozsival was Keith's defensive partner, so he'll also have an adjustment to make with whomever his coach picks.
"We've all played with some different guys," Keith said. "Whatever happens, it's always an adjustment - every game's an adjustment no matter who you're playing with."