Game Day at Swift Current (aka Is The Damn Road Trip Over Yet?)

Alright, this is (hopefully) the last time I have to talk about Shinnimin's suspension.  But the Prince Albert Daily Herald had a good interview with Shinnimin and Nicholls about the hit.

“Obviously, it’s disappointing,” Shinnimin said from Swift Current, Sask., where the Americans face the Broncos tonight to finish a six-game Prairie road trip.

“You don’t want to be out of the lineup too long. But it’s a fair punishment and I accept it.”

Shinnimin phoned Nicholls on Sunday to apologize for what both players described as a “scary” transgression.

“I got a hold of him and it was good to hear that he’s doing OK,” Shinnimin said. “I just gave him my condolences and apologized for the incident. He said he was doing better. That’s good to hear.

“It’s disappointing to hear that I’m suspended for 12 games, but the main thing is that Josh is all right and everything is going to get back to normal.”

“I was just backchecking hard and it was just one of those things, just a last-second reaction,” he said. “I had seen the puck get thrown to the middle toward (Nicholls). I had no intention of hurting the player. It was just a bad break and a bad decision, a mistake by myself. I feel awful about it, obviously.

“It was tough to sleep for a couple of nights. It was a scary moment. You never want to see a player go down like that.”

Nicholls was dazed after the hit, but he clearly remembers the pain he experienced.

“I can remember everything,” he said. “I was just having trouble breathing and my back was kind of sore.

“It kind of opens your eyes to how dangerous the game can be and that it could end any day,” he said. “You never know when this could be your last game. I just feel lucky that I can continue playing in the next week or so.”

“Just like that Liambas hit last year, I think it could even be worse than that,” Nicholls said. “It’s just the fact that I didn’t crack my skull or anything serious like that, it’s not all over the place and it’s not (considered) that serious, but I think it’s just as bad as that one.”

“It was obviously a bad hit — the hit I made — but I didn’t intend to injure him,” Shinnimin said. “I didn’t go for the head or anything like that. I was just backchecking pretty hard and I gave him a bump and he went into the boards pretty awkwardly.

“I’m disappointed at the length,” Nicholls told the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.

“I think it could have been a bit longer, but there’s nothing I can do about it now. Just got to keep playing.” (Daily Herald)

I think it's really good that Shinny called Nicholls to apologize.  And he'll serve his time, hopefully learn from his mistakes.  Personally, I think the 12 games is fair, wouldn't have been surprised with more--like 15-20 even--and wouldn't have necessarily thought more games to be unfair.  It was a bad, ugly hit.  As I type this, the boy and I are debating if the 3 Shinny already sat out should have counted or if it should have been 12 more games on top of the 3 "time served" games already.  Hard to say, like I said, 15 or more wouldn't have surprised me.

Alright, enough of that, let's move on.  There's a game tonight.  The boys roll into Swift Current for the last game of the brutal eastern swing road trip.  It's also the last game before tomorrow's 20-year-old cutdown deadline.  Who will still be with the team on Friday, Mike Brown or Alex Pechurskiy??  Does Alex get the start in what might be his final game as an American?  Will Nikita Kardashev ever get to play a game?  Hell, is Kardashev even on the road trip??  Poor kid.

Of course we'll be liveblogging the game, starting at 5:45 tonight.  Not sure how lively it will be, I've had the week from hell and it's only Wednesday and I know Spokant is fighting a vicious cold.  But we'll be here dammit.  Click on the "Read More" to get to the chat.