Zhamnov possibly out for chicago>>>>

[FLII ME]

Zhamnov injures hip in bronze-medal game

February 24, 2002

BY LEN ZIEHM STAFF REPORTER







The Blackhawks got a scare watching Saturday's bronze-medal game at the Winter Olympics.

Center Alex Zhamnov , the Hawks' best player, skated off the ice in obvious pain early in Russia's 7-2 romp over Belarus. General manager Mike Smith's preliminary report was a hip pointer.

Zhamnov returned to play two shifts in the third period. He's expected back in Chicago today, where he will be evaluated by Hawks' doctors. The Hawks' next game is Tuesday at Philadelphia.

The team's leading scorer with 19 goals and 37 assists, Zhamnov had two goals and two assists in the Hawks' last game--a 5-3 win over Florida on Feb. 13. He is tied for fourth in the NHL in assists and tied for ninth in scoring.

Last season the veteran center suffered a fractured larynx and bruised vocal cords when he was struck with a puck against Pittsburgh on Jan. 21. He missed 18 games, during which the Hawks' bid to make the playoffs collapsed. This season he earned his first berth in the NHL All-Star Game as the Hawks got off to a 33-18-9-0 start.

Tony Amonte and Phil Housley will play for the United States in the gold-medal game today against Canada. Zhamnov and Russian Boris Mironov finished their Olympics Saturday.

Amonte, Housley and Mironov are expected back in Chicago on Monday and will be on the Hawks' flight to Philadelphia for the resumption of NHL activity Tuesday against the Flyers. The Hawks had two other Olympians--Jaroslav Spacek (Czech Republic) and Michael Nylander (Sweden). Their teams were eliminated in the quarterfinals, and they will rejoin the Hawks at practice today.

Sutter expects them to be ready for the Flyers.

''They're paid millions of dollars to play for their [NHL] clubs,'' Sutter said. ''There's a huge element of responsibility. I expect a certain degree of pride and consideration for what we're playing for--the Stanley Cup.''

FAMILY TIME: Sutter couldn't avoid the rink during the time off. He attended two games at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown, Pa., the aging facility where the movie ''Slap Shot'' was filmed.

Sutter visited to watch his son Shaun play for the Johnstown Chiefs of the East Coast Hockey League. Shaun is a 21-year-old forward under contract to the Calgary Flames. He suffered a broken back two years ago, putting his hockey career in jeopardy.

The Saint John's Flames of the American Hockey League drop-ped Shaun to the ECHL club on Jan. 2, and that might have boosted his career. Shaun leads Johnstown with a plus-3 and has four goals.

ON THE DOWN SIDE: Ty Jones, a right wing who was the Hawks' first-round pick in the 1997 entry draft, might be in the final days of his pro career.

The Hawks gave Jones an eight-game promotion during the 1998-99 season, but he has been in the minors since. And this season, the last of his three-year contract with the Hawks, has been a downer with the AHL's Norfolk Admirals.

Jones, who has three goals and 15 points in 48 games, hasn't scored since November. He has had three game misconducts and is sitting out a 10-game suspension for abuse of an official. It happened when he came to the aid of rookie center Tyler Arnason in a fight at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

[ken_valyi]

Again good story, however this would normally go in the Chicago Blackhawks team forum.

But since we have a total of Zero Blackhawks fans currently it's fine here.

[ChrisFrez]

That's a tough break for Chicago. This is the part that angers me about NHL'ers playing in the Olympics.

[wingwop]

That's the best one-liner of all time. He's serving a 10 game suspension for abusing an official. Who is this guy I like him!!

[cASe SenSiTive]

Originally posted by wingwop
That's the best one-liner of all time. He's serving a 10 game suspension for abusing an official. Who is this guy I like him!!

Hehe... yeah. Sounds like he should be the one playing for the Chiefs.