Courtesy: Dobbersports.com
Sports and injuries are synonymous no matter if the sport is contact or non-contact. If athletes push the limits, they’re going to risk injury each time they set foot on their respective playing surface.
Freak accidents also happen and sometimes catastrophe strikes as a crucial member of a roster goes down with physical mishap that could have been avoided. Nov. 29 was the last time Michal Neuvirth was seen in a red, white and blue sweater for the Washington Capitals and he didn’t even make it out of the tunnel. Slipping on a puck and tweaking his right ankle has caused the Czech to miss time and the Capitals to rely more heavily on starter Braden Holtby. At one point, Holtby had started six consecutive games for the Capitals and head coach Adam Oates was looking for any way possible to relieve the 24-year-old given the amount of shots the defenseman in front of him have allowed — in 27 of 31 games played in the 2013-14 NHL season, Washington has allowed 30 or more shots-on-goal.
Neuvirth will be making a rehab start with the Capitals’ AHL (American Hockey League) affiliate in Hershey this weekend. Neuvirth will face either Scranton Friday or Binghamton Saturday as his return to the ice continues to be monitored. His replacement since then has been a German goaltender not named Olaf Kolzig — Kolzig is the former Capitals great and now is the team’s goaltending coach.
Philipp Grubauer has seen action in just five career NHL games, but the 22-year-old has posted staggering numbers when inserted into the lineup as a stopgap for Neuvirth. In those five appearances, Grubauer has two wins, one loss, a 2.22 GAA and a .940 save percentage. Grubauer was called up to Washington after nine games with Hershey. This season, he relieved Holtby in the third period after a sloppy first two from the starter during a Dec. 3 contest against the Carolina Hurricanes. Grubauer denied all nine shots taken at the goal. On Dec. 8, Grubauer was given the start and was a mere 1:53 away from his first career NHL shutout before Benoit Pouliot gave the New York Rangers their lone tally of the night in a Capitals 4-1 victory. While with the Bears in 2013-14, the Rosenheim, Germany native went 4-4-1 with a 2.60 goals-against-average and a .910 save percentage. His AHL career consists of 37 games, a 19-13-3 record, a 2.34 GAA, .917 save percentage and three shutouts.
Courtesy: CapitalsOutsider.com
Before making it to the NHL, Grubauer’s journey spanned the AHL with the Bears, two different clubs in the ECHL, otherwise known as the East Coast Hockey League (Reading Royals, South Carolina Stingrays), and three OHL (Ontario Hockey League) organizations (Kingston Frontenacs, Windsor Spitfires and Belleville Bulls). He has also played for Team Germany in the World Junior Championships, as well as the Rosenheim Strabulls as an amateur.
Grubauer’s first call of duty in the NHL was during the strike-shortened 2012-13 season. The reserve goalie was inserted for 25;05 against the Philadelphia Flyers Feb. 27 on the road and denied all 14 shots thrown his way. His first career start came just over a week later against the New York Islander as he made 40 stops in a 5-2 loss.
Grubauer has been with Washington since he was selected 112th overall by the Capitals in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Scouts have described the 6-foot-1, 184-pound goaltender as one who has a flash of the dramatic, but can’t seem to handle the easy ones. It’s a matter of focus for the young netminder as he has delivered some spectacular saves during his brief stint in the NHL. While he likely won’t remain with the club once Neuvirth returns to full strength, Grubauer has given Oates some more time to mull over what is now a tougher decision on who should remain in D.C. Neuvirth has the experience, but the potential factor has given Grubauer hope that he will make more NHL appearances in the near future.
