February 04, 2015
Seth Wenig/AP
In this April 27, 2014 file photo, Kimmo Timonen reacts to a goal during the third period in Game 5 of the first-round playoff series against the Rangers.
Despite the result of Thursday night's game against the Islanders -- a 3-2 shootout loss -- there was reason for Flyers fans to feel upbeat.
Veteran Kimmo Timonen, who has been sidelined all season after doctors discovered blood clots in both his lungs and his calf over the summer, announced that he has been cleared by doctors to resume skating.
Finally got some good news today!! Back to skating tomorrow after 8 months of RESTING.I will probably feel like I am 25 again!
— Kime4kids (@kime4kids) February 6, 2015
Last month, Timonen expressed his desire to return to action this season, but because the clots lingered in his right calf, he was still unable to skate. That's because the 39-year-old defenseman has been on blood thinners since being diagnosed in August with protein C deficiency, a condition that affects his mother and brother as well. Had Timonen been cut by a skate, the blood thinners would have greatly increased the amount of blood lost.
"I miss competing and that’s probably the biggest thing. I like the game and I like to compete. I just want to feel that one more time.”
Timonen, along with general manager Ron Hextall, addressed the media between the first and second periods on Thursday, and confirmed that he will be on the ice Friday morning in Vorhees, but will skate alone.
"I feel really confident about skating coming back," Timonen said.
He added that his condition is chronic, so the clots -- and the blood thinners used to treat them -- will always remain. He also said the reason he's coming back now is because his original treatment ran on a six-month cycle and this is the earliest he possibly could've returned.
However, Timonen mentioned several times that he won't be taking the medication on game days, so that shouldn't be an issue once he returns.
"I think the biggest thing for you guys to need to know," Timonen said to the media, "is that bleeding factor -- I've seen a couple articles where you say, 'Okay, what happens if Kimmo gets cut on the ice?' There's no bleeding factor, because on the game days I can't be on blood thinners, obviously. So I'm at as much of a risk as anyone out there. That's the biggest thing."
"We feel comfortable that the risk is minimal," Hextall said. "Obviously every time you step on the ice there is risk but we all feel the risk is minimal."
Timonen said in September that he hoped to return this season and that it would be his last in the National Hockey League. Even back then, his sights were set on a February return. And although he expressed Thursday that reaching this point was a long and difficult process, he never gave up on his goal.
"I kept that hope alive," he said. "I worked out really hard, and meeting all of the doctors, Hexy, and the specialists I feel really confident about skating and coming back."
So when will the Finnish defenseman see game action?
“Well I haven’t skated in eight months so we will see when I step on the ice tomorrow and skate," Timonen told reporters. "Hopefully seven to ten days by myself and hopefully with the team and we’ll go from there. Let me get on the ice first and see how I feel."
The Flyers would certainly welcome him back into the lineup with open arms.
"I think up to this point in the year it’s pretty evident how much we have missed Kimmo," Hextall admitted. "It’s not only on the ice it’s off the ice: it’s intangible, it’s the locker room, the work ethic, the professionalism, and everything he brings; then obviously his presence on the ice."
Flyers captain Claude Giroux echoed that sentiment following the game.
“I heard during the game that he got cleared," Giroux told reporters. "It’s great. Kimmo was well liked in this locker room. He brings a lot to us.”
"It'd be great to have him," added goalie Steve Mason. "Obviously it’s a scary thing he was dealing with the blood clots. He’s been patient. It couldn’t have been fun sitting around for I think it’s been almost eight months now, something like that.
However, coach Craig Berube, while happy for Timonen, was noncommittal on the idea of him seeing meaningful time this season.
“You know we are all very happy for him for sure," Berube said after the game. "Happy for his health and seeing him skate is great."
But when asked if he envisioned Timonen having an immediate impact, Berube had his reservations.
"Well he’s skating tomorrow for the first time, it’s been a long time since he played,”
"If" he gets back -- his words, not mine -- Timonen said the blood clots shouldn't limit how often he can play, but he reiterated that he's been out of commission for six months and conditioning could be a factor.
In that time off, Timonen has been enjoying life as a father. In addition to a full slate of appointments to visit doctors and specialists, he's kept himself busy by traveling with his son's hockey team in what he calls the "really good kind of off time."
But his desire to play again has continued to drive him towards getting back on the ice -- specifically playing in a few more games.
"I still miss the game." Timonen said. "I miss competing and that’s probably the biggest thing. I like the game and I like to compete. I just want to feel that one more time.”
Furthermore, the soon-to-be 40-year old would like to leave the game on his own terms.
"I want to come back and hopefully play a game and leave this game with my skates on, that’s probably the biggest thing."
Also in his time off, Timonen spoke to other players who suffer from the same condition and have returned to play.
"Yeah I’ve talked to them a few times and you know they actually went to see the same doctor that I did," he pointed out. "They have been doing great since, and that’s one of the first steps I took to talk to these players that went through the same stuff."
While there may be little risk in returning to practice -- at least according to Hextall and Timonen -- why would Timonen push for a return to a Flyers team that is all but out of playoff contention?
According to Timonen, he wants to "leave this game on a high note." A quick look at the standings would suggest Philadelphia's not the best place for that to happen.
Perhaps the team decides to move him to a contender. It would be one of the rare instances where no one could possibly be mad at the decision to trade away big-name player at the deadline, no matter what the return. Fans would appreciate the Flyers doing Timonen a solid, and since he's going to retire at the end of the year anyway, why not let him go take one more shot at a Stanley Cup, something that's eluded him throughout his 15 years in the NHL.
Sense from what Kimmo Timonen didn't say was that he'd ultimately get moved, if he had his choice, to a contender before March 2 deadline.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 6, 2015
That's out of Timonen's hands for now, and he seems just fine with that.
"I haven't even thought about that," Timonen said when asked about whether or not he thought he would finish the season as a Flyer. "My first thought is to get on the ice, get healthy and get an even chance to get on the ice. That's down the road. Let me get on the ice and hopefully practice with the team and we can go on a daily basis tomorrow."
"I’m just excited to get on the ice tomorrow," he added.
You can check out some video of the press conference here.
