Golf Injury Sidelines Hockey Player.....

[Jeff_Brauer]

Next to the headline "VP shoots man" here is a headline I never thought I would see - hockey player hurts himself driving a golf cart and will miss a season -


ST. LOUIS (AP) - Blues defenseman Erik Johnson, the No. 1 pick in the 2006 draft, tore two ligaments in his right knee during a recent golf outing and is expected to miss the entire season but recover fully.

Johnson, 20, was injured during a team golf outing on Sept. 16 when his right foot got caught between the accelerator and the brake of his golf cart. The Blues had to wait for swelling in the knee to go down before a diagnosis could be made.

Two surgeons determined that Johnson tore the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in the knee that will require an operation to fix.


Tough break (or tear, really) for a super talented kid. I will miss watching him play this year and hope he regains full mobility, etc.  But hurting himself by getting his foot stuck?   ???Huh?

[Jeff Shelman]

What is the over/under on what his blood-alcohol level?

And would any of this have happened if he was walking?

The St. Louis Blues, I would assume, no longer supports mandatory carts.

[Pat Burke]

I'm a huge hockey fan, and it sucks that a goofy injury would take out such a bright prospect.
In my internet travels, it strikes me how many hockey forums took shots at Tiger and his injury during the Open (the typical golfers are sissies act) and now one of the bright stars of the future in the NHL gets hurt in a golf tournament.  Irony is fun

[Jeff Shelman]

Pat,

He is a nice player. I saw him play for the Gophers during his one year in college.

[Bruce Leland]

That's a tough nut for the Blues.  As a Minnesota Gopher fan it was tough to see him leave early but being a No. 1 pick it must be hard for a college kid to stick around.  Here's wishing him well with the rehab.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Pat,

Always nice to have more puck fans here....now we need puck bunnies!

Bruce,

At least when we talk rehab, its not drug or alcohol rehab, its knee rehab!

BTW, had a funny exchange sitting next to Gord Dyer (NHL ref) on the plane the other day.  As a golfer he said he knew my work.  When he said he was an NHL ref, I said, "Hey, I know YOUR work!"  NHL guys are great to talk with.  To sell their sport, they talk freely with fans to generate interest. I once sat next to Bob Gainey as he was going to Bill Goldsworthy's funeral in MSP.  He talked about trades coming up and everything!

[Jason McNamara]

Next to the headline "VP shoots man" here is a headline I never thought I would see -

Sorry Jeff - no more clever political jokes from you until you do some remedial history reading:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burr-Hamilton_duel

But it is another good reason not to take a cart.

[RJ_Daley]

It dawns on me that there have been several incidents from tragedies to just these sort of regretable injuries of Hockey players and coaches as it relates in some way to their pursuit of golf.   

[TEPaul]

Mr Jeffrey Brauer, Sir:

This is only because hockey is really just a game for a bunch of pussies on skates and you know it. Golf is a game for real danger seeking and risking taking men and gals.

[Matt_Cohn]

that's not a golf injury, that's a driving injury   

[TX Golf]

Very interesting because my roommate is from Minneapolis and my best friend is from St. Louis. Although one of them is extremely devastated and the other is somewhat devastated, I realized that I don't really care one bit because it is hockey. I figure if the PGA Tour can go on without Tiger, then the NHL is going to be just fine without Erik Johnson.

[Bruce Leland]

Pat,

Always nice to have more puck fans here....now we need puck bunnies!

Bruce,

At least when we talk rehab, its not drug or alcohol rehab, its knee rehab!

BTW, had a funny exchange sitting next to Gord Dyer (NHL ref) on the plane the other day.  As a golfer he said he knew my work.  When he said he was an NHL ref, I said, "Hey, I know YOUR work!"  NHL guys are great to talk with.  To sell their sport, they talk freely with fans to generate interest. I once sat next to Bob Gainey as he was going to Bill Goldsworthy's funeral in MSP.  He talked about trades coming up and everything!

Jeff, good point about rehab!  Another hockey tidbit, Goldie's son is the coach at St. Olaf College in Northfield MN and is doing some good things for MIAC hockey including a push to build a new rink on campus. 

Those hockey guys love their golf!  As an interesting aside for hockey fans in the know, Roseau MN, a perennial Minnesota High School Hockey power (Broten Brothers, Butsy Erickson, Aaron Ness, etc.) has been to the MN State High School Golf Tournament more than any other program in the tourneys history.  Sticks in the Winter and Stix in the Spring!

[Tom Walsh]

I have been going to Blues games since 1967. We have a solid fan base, but this will be I think 40 years without a drink from Lord Stanley's Cup. No one likes to talk about it but there are rumblings of a curse. Why the curse? Threatening to move to saskatoon? Naming the Arena the 'Checkerdome', letting both Scotty Bowman, Al Arbour, and Jacques Demers leave to bigger and better things, The Doug Wickenheiser snipe hunt knee injury (obscure I know). I need to make a list. Yes we need a primary cause, a la trading Babe Ruth, etc.

[Pat Burke]

I have been going to Blues games since 1967. We have a solid fan base, but this will be I think 40 years without a drink from Lord Stanley's Cup. No one likes to talk about it but there are rumblings of a curse. Why the curse? Threatening to move to saskatoon? Naming the Arena the 'Checkerdome', letting both Scotty Bowman, Al Arbour, and Jacques Demers leave to bigger and better things, The Doug Wickenheiser snipe hunt knee injury (obscure I know). I need to make a list. Yes we need a primary cause, a la trading Babe Ruth, etc.

Maybe having a musical note as a logo?!?!

Of course, I'm a Ducks (and Rangers) fan soo....

[Joe Bausch]

I have been going to Blues games since 1967. We have a solid fan base, but this will be I think 40 years without a drink from Lord Stanley's Cup. No one likes to talk about it but there are rumblings of a curse. Why the curse? Threatening to move to saskatoon? Naming the Arena the 'Checkerdome', letting both Scotty Bowman, Al Arbour, and Jacques Demers leave to bigger and better things, The Doug Wickenheiser snipe hunt knee injury (obscure I know). I need to make a list. Yes we need a primary cause, a la trading Babe Ruth, etc.

Although born in StL, I lived in Detroit as a child and hence am more of a Red Wings fan than the Blues.  But IIRC correctly, the year the Blues had Gretzky they were making a nice run in the playoffs.  I think CuJo was injured but Jon Casey stepped in to do wonderfully.  Then later in the playoffs (conference finals?) they met the Red Wings.  It might have been game six or seven, even OT (?), and the Great One turned over the puck at the blue line and Steve Yzerman picked it up and rifled a shot top shelf over Casey's shoulder.  I think that was one the best teams the Blues had and how ironic that the Great One made the turnover that lead to the winning shot.

[John Foley]

Is there any group of athletes in the world that are better golfers than hockey players?

Maybe it's the hand eye co-ordination or not much overlap in the season's, but everyone I know who played hockey at a high level turned out to be very good golfers.

[PCCraig]

What course was he playing in STL?

[Tom Walsh]

Yes- Gretzky and Coach Mike Keenan. Oil and water. We had the Great One for two months. I had repressed that memory. Gretzky then goes to the Rangers and wins a cup there. I will add this to my curse list.

I don't know what course Johnson was playing, but it was part of a 'team building' thing. I will add this to my curse list as well.

[Bruce Leland]

Is there any group of athletes in the world that are better golfers than hockey players?

Maybe it's the hand eye co-ordination or not much overlap in the season's, but everyone I know who played hockey at a high level turned out to be very good golfers.

I may be biased as I am a former hockey player but I agree with this assessment.  It could possibly have something to do with the fact that baseball players have to go South to play in their off season.  Most hockey players play golf in their off season.....Summer.

[Tom Walsh]

Yep hockey players make good golfers. Two ex Blues come quickly to mind- Brett Hull and Grant Fuhr. A bunch of ex nhl play the celeb circuit right?

[PCCraig]

Tom--

Wayne never won the Cup w/ NY. Only in Edmonton.

[Tom Walsh]

Pat- whoops my bad. I must have been projecting on my Blues curse.   

[PCCraig]

Ha ha...I'm sorry. You could always be a Hawks fan. 

[Richard Boult]

Is there any group of athletes in the world that are better golfers than hockey players?

It certainly helps... I started playing hockey at 35, quit at 45, started golf at 46 and got down to 4  in just 2 years.  Hitting down on the ball comes naturally after learning to get a snap shot to score top shelf.  I started hockey again last year, but the aches and pains are killing my golf game. Hockey does not however help make you a good putter.  I still suck at that.

[Tom Walsh]

Pat-I take some comfort that it's been even longer since the hawks won a Cup. The rivalry between the Blues and the Blackhawks was fierce in the 70s and 80s. Not so much any more. A pity. They both play in rather sterile modern arenas today as opposed to the unique Chicago Stadium and the barnlike St. Louis Arena. Both NLE.