WASHINGTON -- Although he has been diagnosed with a concussion, Claude Giroux skated Monday and Tuesday.
The NHLs leading scorer seems to be pushing hard for a return to the lineup even though common sense says he should exercise caution.
Just look west to Sidney Crosby for an example, there.
Hes a stubborn guy and wants to be back, general manager Paul Holmgren said Tuesday night of his star center. We may have to pull in the reins.
Holmgren said Giroux has had good and bad days and conceded that things have gradually gotten worse.
I dont know if there is any good news in this except that after 15 minutes he started to feel better, Holmgren said.
Were going to take it easy with Claude and give him some time off Wednesday and revisit it again on Thursday.
NHL
Obviously, were concerned. Claude is one of our better players. Hes off to a great start this season. Were going to err on the side of caution.
Holmgren said there is no need for him to do anything in terms of his lineup, even though he is missing five players.
The Flyers have not only held their own in the standings, they have also climbed to the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Were missing Claude and Chris Pronger, its pretty hard to replace those guys, Holmgren said. You make a point that other guys have played better. Were just going to have to ask guys to do the same thing.
We got a tough opponent tonight, a tough game in Montreal a couple nights from now and then Boston at home. So the schedule, theres no real breaks in our scheduleWe need to continue to rally around each other.
Holmgren said, for now, Giroux would not be seeking an outside opinion like Pronger, who will be examined by two neurologists in Pittsburgh on Wednesday to determine whether he is concussed and why he hasnt seen significant improvement in his overall sluggishness.
Holmgren said Pronger seemed better Tuesday and was looking forward to getting some answers in Pittsburgh. He also said the defensemans surgically-repaired left knee continues to make progress.
E-mail Tim Panaccio at tpanotch@comcast.net.