“He was hit above the right eyebrow, suffering a gash that required 60-70 stitches. Flyers assistant coach Ian Laperriere spent 16 seasons in the NHL as a player, and his career would have been longer if not for a couple of minor complications: He took two slap shots to the face, one in 2009, one in 2010, the second of which left him with a bruised brain and post-concussion symptoms and caused nerve damage to his right eye. It certainly was not installed in the athlete lexicon when I was playing. There have been and will be bubbles — when sports is indoors, that is. Franchises and leagues and broadcast networks will implement artificial measures to simulate the atmosphere and feel of pre-pandemic games. Laperrière was hit in the face near the end of a New Jersey power play, resulting in an orbital injury, and a mild concussion. “I know I’m not going to put everybody else at risk. [18][19], He was sworn in as a naturalized US citizen on August 30, 2011, in a ceremony in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.[20]. Real risk. On December 8, 1995, he was traded to the New York Rangers for Stéphane Matteau. People are not doing it out there, and it’s one of the reasons the virus doesn’t want to go away. But the question is, is everybody else going to do the same? The NFL, for now, will sit back and watch and take notes. Laperrière, affectionately known as 'Lappy' to his fans, was an immediate success with Colorado in the 2005–06 NHL season, posting the best points totals of his career. There’s a contrast at the core of what sports — let’s use that umbrella term to refer to the major professional leagues on this continent and the people who direct and compete within them — will try to do over the next couple of weeks. [16] He was named Director of Player Development for the Flyers on June 29, 2012. I have often wished I had been less gung-ho and stupid with my own body. “Hockey players sometimes feel like they’re invincible. Try to be that brave and tough these days, try to project strength and appear indomitable around the court or the ballpark or the rink, and you won’t inspire your teammates, but you might infect them. He sat out the second period receiving between 50 and 100 stitches but returned for the third period. But the pandemic upends the notion that it is a good thing — and more than that, a necessary thing — for an elite athlete to believe that he or she is bulletproof. [8][9], On November 27, 2009, Laperrière was hit with a slapshot in the mouth while killing a penalty at the end of the first period against the Buffalo Sabres. Or is he selfish, a bad husband and prospective father, if he does? On March 14, 1996, he was traded with Ray Ferraro, Mattias Norström, Nathan LaFayette, and a draft pick to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Jari Kurri, Marty McSorley and Shane Churla. [6][7] He led the team that year with 163 penalty minutes, just one more minute than Cody McLeod. Fake crowd noise. Is he selfish, a bad teammate, if he doesn’t take that risk? Wheeler must be careful around his wife and unborn baby, but at least he is able to interact with them in person. (This distinction is why comparisons of sports to war always ring hollow.) The sports in which the athletes are indoors and in closer and more frequent contact, such as basketball and hockey, present different challenges and arguably more peril. You’re tough. We have to do the right thing. Follow along with analysis in your inbox throughout the playoffs. Laperriere, whom everyone calls Lappy, was hit in the face with flying pucks, too — twice in one fateful season. So whatever I can do to make sure they’re safe, that’s the number-one goal for me. “You have to go full speed.”. That’s what the virus does and has done. “I’ve got to be very careful here at the field, outside of the field, wherever I go. “We can’t shake hands. As a youth, Laperrière played in the 1988 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Montreal. He would sit next to his teammates in the dugout or shake their hands after pitching seven shutout innings, and he wouldn’t give it a second thought. Laperriere would leave the game … “People don’t expect you to play through everything as you once did. Walk-up songs and organ music echoed. [11] However, after missing the Flyers second round series versus the Boston Bruins he returned for game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Montreal Canadiens. You’re this. He quickly became a favorite with the Avalanche fans. “You look at the way I play the games: physical, getting to the free-throw line. [23], Laperrière and his family live in Haddonfield, New Jersey. I played a pretty tough game and felt like I’m invincible, but I’m 46 now, and I’ve got a family. If we don’t do that, we’re not going to play. Baseball comes after that.”. But COVID-19 doesn't work that way. You’re that. “I used to make a joke of it: People would ask, ‘What do you do for a living?’ ‘Well, I choke 400-pound men.’ I could do anything. [1], Laperrière played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) from 1990 to 1993 and was drafted by the St. Louis Blues of the NHL in the seventh round and pick number 158 in the 1992 draft. That contradiction raises a profound question as the games resume: What exactly are we asking of these athletes once sports comes back, and are they equipped to handle it? Laperrière spent nine seasons of his NHL career with the Los Angeles Kings and also spent time with the St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers, Colorado Avalanche, and Philadelphia Flyers. Here’s something else the virus does: It takes all the aspects of life away from sports, all the elements or “distractions” that an athlete is supposed to cast aside once the game begins — his or her family and friends, the triumphs and troubles of his or her daily existence — and shoves them right to the front of the athlete’s mind. They overcome adversity. He went to pick up an order of takeout food. He said he did not believe he suffered a head injury, but vowed never to play another game without a visor.” He was announced as the Avalanches' Masterton Trophy nominee for the 2008–09 season on April 3, 2009. Will it make a difference in the 2020 season? “You can’t not play,” said Brooks, who works as an analyst for NBC Sports Philadelphia. The Phillies’ John Middleton fired Gabe Kapler and hired Joe Girardi. “There’s no question,” said former NFL offensive lineman Barrett Brooks, who played for four teams, including the Eagles, over his 11 years in the league. It’s unlikely that fear of contracting COVID-19 would give a player pause in the middle of a contest; no athlete is wired that way. It turns courage (such as it exists on a playing field) into caution, sending into hyperdrive a trend — a greater understanding and acceptance that athletes should do what they can to conserve their bodies and protect their health — that has been accelerating anyway. But several athletes in various sports have decided that the threat of exposure isn’t a risk worth taking, and others wake up every morning knowing that they have to weigh the benefits against the possible costs. For those 10 yards. 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