Timonen Could Return, Coburn Likely Won't

Matt Bodenschatz | National Hockey League

May 17, 01:39 PM | Hype this story!

The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that Flyers defensemen Kimmo Timonen and Braydon Coburn could be back in the lineup tomorrow afternoon as the Eastern Conference Finals return to Pittsburgh for Game Five.

Timonen, who has missed all four games in this series with a blood clot suffered while blocking a shot in the conference semi-finals against the Montreal Canadiens, was given doctor clearance to play. It was reported that no further damage can be done to his foot, though he will be forced to play through considerable pain.

“It comes down to how much pain I can take,” explained Timonen yesterday. “I feel confident that I’ll be ready to go on Sunday, but I won’t know for sure until I practice with the team and really be out there with the boys and see how it feels. So we’ll see after practice for sure.”

Coburn, sidelined since Game Two, when he took an errant puck to the eye, remains in a difficult situation. While he would like to return to the roster for Game Five, the initial symptoms of a broken orbital bone and 50 stitches, along with the new symptoms of a potential concussion, are making it difficult.

“He just doesn’t feel right,” explained Flyers GM Paul Holmgren. “He’s a little antsy right now about all the attention that’s put on him, and he’s trying to do the right thing for himself and for his team.”

He added that, while no one has diagnosed Coburn with a concussion, “...he got hit in the head with a puck at a high rate of speed, and he doesn’t feel right.”

Comments

  1. day1pen

    May 17, 03:43 PM

    Just curious what has changed with Timonen.
    He seems to be exactly the same place as he was when first diagnosed – with a blood clot that causes pain and swelling and his foot to go numb. When first diagnosed, it was too dangerous to play, but now it’s not? He went a week or so and the clot didn’t move because he wasn’t doing anything and may or may not have been on anticoagulants. That makes everything fine?

    I hope Timonen does play. He’s skated for a few minutes the last couple of days and won’t be able to feel his foot (see Smith, Marvel). I think he’ll end up being more a liability than an asset.

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