Written by Steven Ellis, AllHabs.net
OAKVILLE, ON. – This is really starting to get old.
Andrei Markov underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on Monday to remove debris in his right knee. In case you are unaware of the whole situation, and you shouldn’t be after reading “Rookie’s” post . Markov has been out since November 13th, 2010 due to a knee injury.
Markov, who used to be described as the best defenseman, if not best player, on the Canadiens during his tenure in Montreal. Markov has never played for any other team during his 10 year career in the NHL. He can be an elite puck-moving defenseman, and, when healthy, can total 50-60 points a season.
Speculation about Markov’s return began when he joined his teammates for practice last week in California. Almost every Canadiens beat writer told you that he would be returning to the lineup against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday (and some would even said Bobby Ryan would join the Habs shortly after the game was done). That wasn’t the case, and on Saturday, before Montreal took on the Los Angeles Kings, Pierre Gauthier announced that Markov would possibly return in three weeks. This is also the same man who said Markov would miss only a few games if any in August. Even though its said he may only miss a month or so, in Markov’s case this could be longer.
It’s true that Markov has missed more games than he has played in the last two seasons. Former fans of his have turned to haters, and some questioned why Montreal signed him in the off-season to a three-year deal worth $5,750,000 per. That’s a hefty price to pay for someone who isn’t playing. The good news is his salary currently doesn’t fully count toward the cap, due to being on the injured reserve list.
Some people have suggested that Markov is Montreal’s version of Rick Dipietro. While he may be having a lot of setbacks, Markov isn’t signed to a 15-year deal. The only difference is Dipietro has actually returned for a few games, while Markov continues to have setbacks.
As painful as this is for Canadiens fans, you must imagine how hard it is for Markov. I’m no doctor, and I don’t know how to fix his knee, but if he hasn’t returned after this much time, could it possibly be time to hang up the skates? What if he gets injured again?
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