Claude Giroux left Saturday’s game against Lightning after being kneed in the head by teammate Wayne Simmonds and did not return.
"He kind of fell and he was right in front of me," Simmonds said. "I was on the backcheck and I wanted to get into the play and I tried to jump over him. I don’t know where I caught him."
Of course, the first thing anyone fears in this situation is a concussion, but Flyers GM Paul Holmgren says Giroux wasn’t experiencing symptoms.
"Not really a headache or anything like that," Holmgren said. "This is really just precautionary at this stage. We didn’t want to put him back in there at that time. It’s a game in December. Obviously he’s one of our better players, so we’ll err on the side of caution."
Giroux add two assists in the game to bring his NHL leading points total to 39. Illya Bryzgalov also left the game early with a lower body injury but later returned to the bench. After the game he told reporters that he would be ready to go Tuesday’s game in Washington. Paul Holmgren agreed.
"After the second period he wanted to continue and it stiffened up on him in the third," Holmgren said. "We don’t think it’s anything serious. It’s an off-day tomorrow (Sunday) for the players. I would assume he’ll be fine for the next game (Tuesday in Washington).