Flyers' Laperriere Looking for 'Little Miracle'
(from the Philadelphia Inquirer)
By Phil Sheridan
Inquirer Sports Columnist
May 18, 2010 - Since taking a slapshot over his right eye, Ian Laperriere has become the face - the battered, bruised, scarred face - of this improbable Flyers playoff run. With his stitched-up forehead, damaged right eye and bruised brain, Laperriere has become a kind of folk hero and inspirational figure.
And that's all well and good, except for one small detail. Laperriere wants to play. As in: returning to the ice during this series against the Montreal Canadiens.
On a day when Jeff Carter took his first tentative strides in skates since breaking his foot, Laperriere quietly skated in contact drills.
His likely return raised this question: Are the risks getting too big? As much as we all admire and celebrate the toughness and sacrifice these guys are willing to make, where is the line between honorable and reckless?
"The line," Laperriere said after Monday's practice, "is when the doctor tells you you're 100 percent. That's the line for me. There's toughness and there's dumbness. There's no, 'Oh, you're 80 percent. You might get hurt.' You do that with a knee or an elbow. Your brain? Not so much."
Laperriere's words are reassuring. It takes more courage, in a way, to wait until you're absolutely certain it is safe to play. The code says you play hurt when you're able - not that you risk your ability to speak coherently when you're 60.
"We play through injuries," Laperriere said. "We take pride in playing through injuries. Everyone in this room has done it before. But that one's a new one. I'm not willing to risk my life. Don't get me wrong. I love the game. Hockey is my passion. My kids are my life... I've been with my wife for 20 years. She's my best friend, my wife, and I know I'm putting her through a lot right now. She's supporting me with everything, but right now, it's difficult."
You think of what Laperriere said that night in Newark. He'd gone down to block a shot. This one had caught him just above his right eye. Blood filled his eyes so that Laperriere couldn't see. His first question for Jim McCrossin, an athletic trainer capable of getting Humpty Dumpty back on ice for the next period, was whether his eye was still there.
"I want to see my kids grow up," Laperriere said after the game, the stitches sticking out every which way like a second eyebrow.
He also said he would wear a shield from now on, and he is practicing with one. Laperriere is also wearing a larger, more advanced helmet.
"I look like [The Flintstones' Great] Gazoo," Laperriere said. "But who cares? I've got the shield down to here, but I don't care."
Laperriere had a fresh MRI taken before practice. Copies of it were sent to four neurologists. All four have to sign off before Laperriere will return to live action.
"I've got to go 4 for 4," he said. "What I want to hear is, 'When you go out, it's going to take the same impact for you to hurt yourself again, to start bleeding again.' I'll be like, 'Perfect, I'm back in.' "
No doctor can tell you there is no risk in playing ice hockey. Every player on the ice is taking a risk, just as everyone who drove to the game took a certain risk on the highway. It's a matter of probability, of making a bad situation worse.
"Healthy, there's a risk going out there," Laperriere said. "I took that risk for 16 years. I'm willing to take that risk again but not putting my life on the line."
No doubt Laperriere and Carter are feeling the tug of playing in the biggest games of their lives. You get this close to the Stanley Cup, you do whatever you can to be part of it. They see Simon Gagne come back and score the biggest goals of the postseason so far, game-winners that kept the Flyers alive and then put the Boston Bruins away.
"Hockey players live to play hockey at this time of the year," Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said, calling Laperriere "the emotional leader of our hockey team."
Laperriere drew a huge roar from the Wachovia Center crowd when he was shown on the big screen during the Boston series. Fans sported shirts saying, "It's all about Lappy." He came to embody the spirit of sacrifice and selflessness that has this team seven wins from the Stanley Cup.
Laperriere had given enough. Now he wants to give more.
"Hopefully, a little miracle is going to come my way," he said. "If I'm 100 percent and Coach [Peter] Laviolette needs me, I'll be ready."
That's very good news.
"Trust me," Laperriere said. "When you see me out there for a game, it's because I'm 100 percent. There won't be any doubts in my mind."
That's even better news.
Contact columnist Phil Sheridan at 215-854-284 or psheridan@phillynews.com.