We probably won’t know until after the playoffs exactly what is wrong with Ryan Smyth’s right foot, but it’s probably a safe bet the Avalanche left winger has a serious injury for him to miss a playoff game.
Smyth missed Game 3 against the Red Wings on Tuesday because of a foot injury, the result of being hit with a shot in Game 2 on Saturday. On Monday, Avs coach Joel Quenneville said Smyth missed practice only because of “maintenance” issues, and was likely to play Tuesday. A day later, Quenneville said Smyth would be out. But for how long? “We’ll call it day to day,” Quenneville said.
Smyth missed three weeks of the regular season because of a fractured ankle bone. Rookie T.J. Hensick replaced Smyth in the lineup Tuesday, and got his first career playoff point in the first period. The Michigan native put a puck on net that was tipped in by rookie Cody McLeod.
Hannan back.
Avs defenseman Scott Hannan returned after missing one game because of a foot injury.
Hannan appeared at less than full speed, but the Avs had missed his steady presence in their own end.
Multinetworks.
Game 3 was a rarity, with four telecasts coming from the Pepsi Center.
It was carried on Versus, the national cable network, but Versus has only a limited number of exclusives in the first two rounds, and this wasn’t one of them.
As a result, both Altitude and Fox Sports Net Detroit carried the game with their regular broadcast crews.
Also, TSN — the Canadian equivalent of ESPN — broadcast the game nationally north of the border.
Team practices.
Both teams have practices scheduled today in the Denver area, with Game 4 set for Thursday night at the Pepsi Center.
Adrian Dater and Terry Frei, The Denver Post
