Carlo discusses his latest concussion
Defenseman one of three players returning to the lineup
Brandon Carlo was given the green light to return to the Bruins’ lineup on Saturday, but the defenseman made sure he was ready to do so.
Carlo revealed his “upper body” injury he suffered in Colorado on Jan. 8 was indeed a concussion, something he’s dealt with extensively throughout his career. While some players do not like to speak about brain injuries, Carlo volunteered what he’d been dealing with. But he also feels comfortable that he’s checked off all the boxes in order to return to the physical game of hockey and was excited to be back.
While he’’s had at least a half dozen concussions, the 27-year-old Carlo made it clear he’s approached his return to the lineup with clear eyes.
“Obviously, I’ve been through this before and it’s something I take seriously,” said Carlo after an optional morning skate. “It’s hard at times because in the moment you can start to feel really good but you still have to pay attention to the little things, the little symptoms that are still lingering. And from there, I also have to focus upon, with my history of concussions, just the future. But overall, I wouldn’t put myself in this position if I didn’t feel fully confident to be out there and playing to the best of my abilities. I still feel very comfortable playing this game and enjoying it to the best of my ability. It helps me recognize even more that each day, each game is a blessing. I’m just grateful to be here.”
Carlo suffered his first concussion at the end of his rookie season on a hit by Alexander Ovechkin against the end boards in his own zone. Over the years, Carlo has tried to tweak his game so that he doesn’t take those high impact hits unnecessarily.
“I feel that even within my game, I haven’t been taking as big of hits or putting myself in vulnerable positions,” said Carlo. “This one was fluky. I kind of just ran into an elbow and then from there got nauseous. After I ended up going into the locker room, I threw up and that held me out of the game, for sure, based on those symptoms. But I feel good about where my game’s been at, especially with taking hits and being a little more cognizant of riding guys into the wall and not creating that separation that allows them to get the bigger hits on me. I feel like I’ve done a good job with that, but this one was a bit fluky. Not as bad as my other ones, by any means, so I’m happy with that.”
He’s also learned that, when he does suffer a concussion, he needs to pay attention to any lingering symptoms, a careful approach that be counterintuitive to the athlete’s natural inclinations to get back as soon as possible.
“It comes to the point where you have to focus on your brain health in the future as well,” said Carlo. “You’re seeing it a lot more with guys and it’s a topic to be discussed with the CTE and all of that in the future. You definitely want to do all you can to protect (against) that. I just make sure I’m feeling 100 percent, as I do, and I’m ready to come back.”
Reinforcements
Carlo wasn’t the only player returning to the lineup on Saturday. Carlo’s penalty-killing partner Derek Forbort, out since Dec. 3 with a troublesome groin injury, was also penciled back in, as was rookie Matt Poitras, who suffered a shoulder injury on Jan. 9 in Arizona. And Linus Ullmark was making his first start since he was injured in the same game.
When Ullmark left the Arizona game in the middle of overtime with what’s been termed only as a lower body injury, it looked a lot worse than it turned out to be.
“I had a similar injury in Buffalo and I felt the same at the initial happening, so I thought it was a lot more severe at the time,” said Ullmark. “But then, even the days right after, it felt way better than it did the last time I did that, so I was very positive and in a good mood because I knew it was not going to be four to six weeks or anything like that. It was all coming down to how I would feel on the ice. I felt pretty good in St. Louis and we had a good couple of practices here in Boston as well, so setbacks or anything. Very thankful for that.”
He was also happy to see Jeremy Swayman able to run with the ball for a bit, posting a 3-0-1 record in four straight starts.
“I never had a doubt,” said Ullmark. “He’s an AllStar for a reason. It’s very well deserved. I thought he would make it on the initial one and not the fan voting. That’s how I feel about it and that’s how good he’s been for us this year. And it’s always a fun thing to battle against the best. I had the same kind of mindset last year when I had the opportunity to go, so I’m very happy for him. But it’s also a little bit of a carrot for me to chase him a little bit.”
Lohrei, Beecher sent down
With Carlo and Forbort activated off injured reserve, defensemen Mason Lohrei and center John Beecher were assigned to Providence. Both are waiver exempt so it’s not a shock either player was sent down. This is Beecher’s first trip back to Providence since making the B’s opening night roster. His game has been up and down recently and was scratched the first two games of the current homestand as Jesper Boqvist has stepped ahead of him on the depth chart.