Penguins Notebook: Surovy takes hockey over knee operation
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Penguins winger Tomas Surovy had a decision to make.
When the regular season ends, he could have chosen to join Slovakia for the world championships next month in Riga, Latvia.
Or he could have arthroscopic surgery on the knee injury he has been quiet about for a while.
That's right -- he's going to Latvia.
"I will get surgery after that," Surovy said yesterday after the Penguins practiced for their game tonight against the New York Islanders.
"The doctor said the damage is done, and I'm not going to injure it [further]," Surovy said before heading to New York.
He described the problem as a slightly torn meniscus.
This will be Surovy's second international tournament this year with his home country's national team. He played in the Olympics in February. He had one assist and was even in plus-minus in six games.
He will join at least four other Penguins in the world championships -- Sidney Crosby (Canada) and Americans Brooks Orpik, Ryan Malone and Andy Hilbert.
Fan Appreciation Night
The Penguins will be giving away several prizes on Fan Appreciation Night at their final home game Monday, including a "Shirts off our Backs" promotion in which 20 fans chosen at random will go on the ice after the game to get the signed jerseys worn by the players.
Other prizes include a two-year lease on a Volkswagen Jetta, a Honda Dirtbike and ATV, televisions, travel awards and team memorabilia.
Slap shots
Penguins defenseman Josef Melichar sat out practice, but is expected to play tonight against the Islanders. ... The Penguins and Islanders meet again Monday night at Mellon Arena. ... Nine players have made their NHL debut with the Islanders this season; seven for the Penguins ... Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro is going in the opposite direction of Surovy. He will have minor knee surgery and not play for the United States in the world championships. ... The unsold pink hockey sticks from the Tribute to Hockey Moms event will be donated to breast cancer charities for fundraising, and TPS Hockey will have a limited edition of the pink sticks for sale to the public next month. The event raised more than $110,000 for breast cancer research.
First Published April 15, 2006 12:00 am
