Renney to skip weekend games with concussion
EDMONTON — Unable to shake concussion symptoms that have plagued him since Feb. 6, Edmonton Oilers head coach Tom Renney won’t be behind the bench this weekend.
For the last several days Renney has not taken part in practices or pre-game skates, but has been running the bench during the games. Obviously, it was an approach that wasn’t working.
Renney missed the game Friday against the Colorado Avalanche and won’t be available for Sunday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks. “It was an accident but I feel awful,” said defenceman Ladislav Smid, who inadvertently deflected the puck that hit Renney 11 days ago.
“I apologized to him, I sent him a text that day, then talked to him the day after. He said he was feeling better, but concussions are crappy. It’s one of the worst injuries you can get.
“You don’t feel well, you feel like you’re in a fog. You don’t have energy,” Smid continued. “He needs a few days off.”
Renney needed a dozen stitches to close the cut when he was hit during the morning skate in Toronto. He did not coach that night against the Maple Leafs, but was back behind the bench against the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 11.
He admitted after the game he was not feeling well. Then, following Wednesday’s game in Edmonton, it was evident Renney was not himself. “I’m not sure how cognizant I am of anything,” he said at the time.
“Because of the responsibility of processing properly as a head coach during a game, he and the medical staff feel it’s better if he takes a break now,” associate coach Ralph Krueger said. “On Monday, we’ll take a look at where we’re at.
“He’s definitely not on, otherwise he’d be with us through the weekend.”
Krueger, who assumed the head-coaching duties in Ottawa, had taken over for two games last season as well when Renney left the team after the death of his father. He is still winless.
“Obviously he wants to be behind the bench,” captain Shawn Horcoff said of Renney.
“He just needs a little bit of rest and time to get over it. It hasn’t been that bad but he wants to be back to 100 per cent, and we are playing every second day here for the rest of the way and with something like that, if you don’t get after it early and let it settle, it can fester for a while.”
“He’s a get-after-it kind of guy who’s slowed down a bit lately,” said winger Ryan Jones, “but to be honest we haven’t noticed it too much. It’s tough. I’ve never seen it before in the league. I’m sure he’ll be back soon.”