Hip injury will require more rest

Tuesday, November 11, 2003

By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Mario Lemieux decided yesterday to sit out another three games because of a strained muscle in his left hip that is responding slowly to treatment.

Lemieux had hoped to return for the game tomorrow night in New York against the Rangers and had informed Penguins officials over the weekend that he was feeling better. That prompted him to suit up yesterday for practice at Southpointe, his first on-ice appearance in a week, but it did not last long. He made it through only six minutes before leaving the rink, visibly uncomfortable during drills and repeatedly raising his left leg during stoppages.

Lemieux, who declined to speak with reporters yesterday, will not skate again until Monday, when he will be re-evaluated by the team's medical staff. That will put him out of the game tomorrow as well as a Friday game in Buffalo, N.Y., and a Saturday home game against the Florida Panthers. That also would push his target date for a return to Nov. 19 at home against the Minnesota Wild. He has been out of the lineup since leaving a Nov. 1 home game against the Boston Bruins after one period. The Penguins won that game but lost the next three.

Tom Plasko, Lemieux's sports massage therapist and personal trainer, said that Lemieux's muscle, the hip flexor, has been receiving ultrasound, electrical stimulus and exercise treatments to accelerate healing , and he said other techniques will be added to the list in the coming week.

He said the team does not believe the problem is more serious than initially thought.

"It's not responding as fast as Mario would like," Plasko said. "But it is responding. It's just going to take a little more time, a little more rest. Trust me: We're going to take care of Mario."

Lemieux needed surgery to correct a problem with hip muscles two years ago, but that was on the right side. He and team officials have said the current ailment is unrelated.

Penguins coach Eddie Olczyk said the absence of Lemieux affects the team in all areas of the rink, not just the attacking zone. In his nine games, Lemieux has a goal, eight assists and a minus-2 rating that is among the best on the team.

"He was doing so many things," Olczyk said. "If you didn't know our team or didn't know much about our game ... he was doing a lot of little things out there. It's a big loss. We haven't had him for the past couple of games and, obviously, teams play ... I don't want to say they play differently against us, but certainly their focus is not on him. It's a huge loss for us. We were hoping that Ace would play all 82 games. ... But that's the reality of it, and we have to deal with it."

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