Wings’ Franzen Hopes To Come Back From Concussion
Detroit Red Wings forward Johan Franzen played in only 33 games last season due to the effects of a concussion combined with other injuries. But the 35 year old has been working hard in rehab and hopes to return to action with the team this season.
Franzen has been working out with teammates in informal skating sessions in Detroit and says he’s ‘pushing the intensity’. His hope is to be medically cleared to join the Red Wings when they start training camp on September 17 in Traverse City, Michigan: “Going pretty hard, probably too much for me, just to see if I can get through it. My threshold is getting higher and higher every week. [I’m] just pushing my body a little more, letting it rest and see where we are after that.”. His ultimate goal is a return to NHL action–he hopes to be in the Detroit Red Wings lineup for the team’s opening game of the regular season. Detroit starts the season on their home ice at the Joe Louis Arena against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 9.
He says that despite multiple concussions suffered during his stellar NHL career he’s not given any thoughts to retirement. For now, his focus is entirely on being ready for the regular season: “Just go as hard as I can the last couple of weeks before camp and see what happens. It’s been a lot of tough years, the past two or three, with injuries. I just want to have a good season. I want to make that decision [about retirement] myself.”
His teammates are supportive though they admit they have some concern about what an additional concussion would mean for the well liked Franzen: “We’ve all thought about what that might mean. But hopefully we can put that out of our minds.” The Wings won’t put their financial concerns ahead of Franzen’s well being but they’d definitely like to see him return to form. Franzen still has five seasons left on an 11 year deal with an average annual value of just under $4 million. That’s a big chunk of change to commit to a player who might not be physically able to play.
