Walking wounded

Published 5:16 pm Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Everett’s was fortunate to avoid the injury bug during the first half of the season, defenseman Shayne Brown the only player to miss appreciable time because of injury.

Well, the bug has caught up to the Tips, and at the worst possible moment as Everett is just finishing off a brutal five-game stretch against the Western Conference’s three best teams.

Here’s the scoop:

– Brown, of course, is done for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn hip-flexor muscle.

– Left wing Daniel Bartek is still recovering from foot surgery for a foot fracture. The injury report lists him as 4-6 weeks away.

– Defenseman Chris de la Lande hasn’t played since Jan. 11 because of a groin strain. He’s listed as day-to-day.

– Center Paul Van de Velde is recovering well from his concussion, but won’t be able to play tomorrow because of the league’s concussion protocol.

– Left wing Tyler Maxwell missed Sunday’s game because of a knee injury and is also listed as day-to-day.

And this doesn’t even count the players who are battered and bruised after a rough four-in-five against the league’s elite. Tips coach John Becanic said there’s going to be a lot of game-time decisions made for tomorrow’s game against Spokane. We’ll have to see what kind of lineup he’s able to cobble together, but it looks like the young guys are going to log a lot of ice time again.