Cory Sarich hoping for one last shot at NHL following bike accident
Cory Sarich last played an NHL game on April 1, 2014. He didn’t finish the final seven regular season games for the Colorado Avalanche nor did he play in their seven-game first-round series against the Minnesota Wild.
Nearly a year and a half later, the 37-year old defenseman is hoping to make a comeback after a severe bike accident last summer.
Sarich was hit by a truck while biking in Invermere, British Columbia in July 2014. After being transported to a Calgary hospital, he was diagnosed with five fractured vertebrae and suffered a head wound, burns to his shoulder and wrist along with road rash. He also battled a staph infection during his recovery.
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Before the accident, Sarich knew he would be hitting the open market after the Avalanche told him they wouldn’t be bringing him back. After that, he told the Denver Post he wasn’t ready to hang up his skates. By November he was back on the ice.
Now 14 months later, Sarich is ready for one last shot at the NHL, if a team would only give him the opportunity.
Speaking to Scott Cruickshank of the Calgary Herald, Sarich has been training with his brother-in-law, Philadelphia Flyers blueliner Nick Schultz, and is open to playing in the AHL if that’s what it takes to get back.
“I am open to any opportunity, but so far none have presented themselves.”
Optimistic?
“I really was in August,” replied Sarich. “Now that it’s, all of a sudden, September? You realize there’s only 15 or 16 days to training camp and things start to look a little more bleak. I’m a realist, though. If nothing happens, that’s the way it is. At least I’m in good shape. It was a fun summer.
“Last summer was a long one — and this summer was a super-short one. It was nice. It was normal.”
Sarich has played 969 NHL games with four teams and won a Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He said he’s spoken with a few teams, and while time is running out, he’s obviously at peace if that 16:39 of ice time he played during the 3-2 overtime win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 1, 2014 is his last.
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy
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