The new year brings hope of better circumstances — and that’s definitely the case for the Utah Hockey Club, which anticipates the return of a number of injured players. Here’s the latest news on each one.
John Marino injury
John Marino is now a full participant in Utah’s practices and is no longer in a yellow non-contact jersey. Head coach André Tourigny is not one to publicly speculate when it comes to his players’ injuries, but he did say Marino is on track to return.
“It’s coming,” he said. “Not this week, but it’s coming.”
Marino underwent back surgery in October and was originally expected to miss three to four months. He has not played a game for Utah HC since being acquired from the New Jersey Devils over the summer.
Sean Durzi injury
Sean Durzi joined his teammates on the ice at practice on Monday — the first time he’s done so publicly since suffering a shoulder injury in the fourth game of the season. He participated in the warmup, firing plenty of hard shots. That’s a good sign for a shoulder injury.
Once practice officially started, Durzi retired to the speed skating track at the Olympic Oval, where he practiced stickhandling for a few minutes before heading off to work with the trainers.
Tourigny has mentioned on a few occasions that Durzi is so eager to return that the team has had to hold him back a bit so he doesn’t cause more damage. He echoed the same sentiment after practice on Monday.
In Durzi’s four games with the team, he notched a pair of assists and seven penalty minutes, including a fight against Connor Murphy of the Chicago Blackhawks in the inaugural game.
Connor Ingram injury
As previously reported by the Deseret News, Connor Ingram has been loaned to Utah HC’s AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, on a conditioning stint.
He has yet to play a game, but Tourigny cited the AHL’s longer, more frequent practices as a key benefit to having him there. NHL practices rarely exceed 45 minutes, which Tourigny believes is too short for a goalie to get his rhythm back after a long-term injury.
“I think for him to have a chance to go to Tucson and playing and practicing and having reps and having to push himself, that’s great,” Tourigny said on Monday.
Tourigny said he doesn’t yet have a plan in terms of a goalie rotation when Ingram returns. Barring any other injuries, there would be a traffic jam in net — but that’s a good problem for a coach to have.
In Ingram’s 13 games this season, he has six wins, a .871 save percentage and a 3.61 goals-against average.
Maveric Lamoureux injury
Tourigny did not give any updates on Maveric Lamoureux’s injury status, but the last time I saw him, just before the Christmas break, he still had a cast on his arm. His original timeline projected that he’d return sometime between Dec. 27 and Jan. 10, give or take.
In 15 NHL games this year, the rookie defenseman has managed a goal, three points and 42 penalty minutes while averaging 14:49 of ice time per game.
Robert Bortuzzo injury
After missing nine games with a lower-body injury, Robert Bortuzzo rejoined the lineup on Jan. 2 against the Calgary Flames. After playing just 8:25, though, he left the game due to injury.
Tourigny said on Monday that he doesn’t know whether it’s the same injury, but it was the same body part.
“It’s too bad because he helps us so much on being predictable, communication on the ice, experience on the bench, his presence on the bench, just the way he communicates and his leadership,” Tourigny said of Bortuzzo.
The 35-year-old defenseman has a pair of assists and 22 penalty minutes in his 16 games this year, while averaging 10:53 of ice time.