When the Blackhawks announced Thursday morning that Andrew Shaw was again in concussion protocol, the worst undoubtedly crossed many people’s minds. The unknown of a brain injury, especially for someone who’s had them before, is terrifying.
Shaw’s last concussion sidelined him for 13 months. It was a long and difficult journey for him to return to the Blackhawks to begin this season. He was quite open about that.
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Here is what we know right now.
The Blackhawks believe Shaw suffered the concussion when he took an elbow to the head from Dallas Stars defenseman Joel Hanley on a puck pursuit during the second period of Tuesday’s game, according to a source. Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton wasn’t specific on when the incident occurred, but he said Shaw “got elbowed in the face.”
Here’s video of the play:
Shaw remained in the game after that play and had 5:26 more ice time. He had one more shift in the second period and five more in the third period. His final shift occurred in the last minute of regulation. There weren’t any apparent signs he was dealing with something.
It’s unclear when Shaw was placed in concussion protocol. He did not participate in the Blackhawks’ morning skate on Thursday. He was placed on injured reserve on Thursday afternoon.
Colliton spoke to the media shortly after the team announced Shaw was in the protocol.
“It’s terrible,” Colliton said. “Not much more to say than that. Very disappointing.”
Colliton’s own playing career was cut short due to multiple concussions, and Colliton had previously mentioned his hope for Shaw to remain healthy.
Colliton was certainly thinking beyond the immediate impact of losing Shaw in the lineup.
“Yeah, it’s the personal part, it’s hard to swallow,” Colliton said. “Yeah, not much to say about it. We’ve got to professionally do our job and come in here and play hard and we’ve got a good thing going but we’ve got to earn it every day. Part of it is doing it without your full group. We’ve got to do both. Feel for Shawzy and get it done anyway.”
The unknown of this is the severity of the injury. A source said Shaw was at home resting and more would be known in the next few days.
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There isn’t immediate news with most head injuries. They’re often wait-and-see scenarios due to their unpredictability.
One league source said Tuesday he was hopeful Shaw was fine, but the source wondered if all this was worth it for Shaw and whether he should consider retirement. That certainly was a question that came back when the 29-year-old was deciding whether to play again after his last concussion.
Shaw addressed that when he returned this season.
“Obviously, it was tough being away from the game and the guys in the room,” Shaw said in early January. “But to be able to spend that time with my family helped me push through this, helped me get better, let me see life without hockey and know that if anything happened to me, injury-wise, I am good. I’m OK without hockey. I’ll survive. Andrew Shaw is not hockey. I have a life outside of hockey. I have a family, I have friends. … It’s nice to feel that.”
Shaw was enjoying being back around hockey. He had been active on the ice and helping the Blackhawks win, and he had been his usual self with his teammates around the rink. He had Dylan Strome cracking up during Strome’s media session Tuesday, and Ian Mitchell mentioned recently how Shaw had given him an autograph and told him it’d be worth something someday.
“Love it,” Shaw said of being back on Tuesday. “I mean, I love being at home with my family, but in that circumstance, it was obviously tough. You know, coming back from the injury, rehab, getting back into shape, it was tough. It was a long year, but all worth it. It’s great to be back with the guys; being in the room is a lot of fun, obviously. Being on the road with the guys is one of the best parts of hockey. Yeah, it’s good to be back. I’m sure I’ve annoyed people already, but whatever.”
(Photo: Glenn James / NHLI via Getty Images)
