Darcy Tucker Ponders Injury & Trade Rumours
Posted February 8, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
When Darcy Tucker was injured on Boxing Day, he really put his foot in it.
And now that that foot has been in a cast for the past few weeks, the Leafs’ scoring leader is anxious to get it off and replace it with something a lot more comfortable – his skates.
Tucker’s nagging injury has been giving his teammates a pain and it’s killing the winger himself, who can’t stand watching it all unfold from the sidelines. He tried a brief comeback on New Year’s Day, but things only got worse.
Nineteen days later, doctors added the cast.
“It’s been a very difficult situation,” the 31-year-old admits. “From thinking you’re going to be back in the lineup to not playing, it’s tough. But I have to deal with it. And hopefully I’ll be well-rested when I come back and can give us a boost going into the playoffs.”
But when he comes back is still an open question. He’ll see a doctor about the problem on Friday. Once it’s determined that his injured foot has healed enough, it will be at least two more weeks before team physicians will even consider letting him lace up a skate.
“We’re pretty positive that we can probably get it off this weekend,” he says. “So that’s a big thing. At least I can start walking and doing some conditioning if I can get it off.”
Despite the fact the team has been soaring of late, winning five straight and eight out of ten, the Buds miss Tucker’s potent offence. He led the Leafs with 19 goals in 39 games before the injury bug bit.
But even if he heals, there are no guarantees he’ll be donning the Blue and White again.
The reason? The February 27 th trade deadline will have passed long before he returns and the rumour mill continues to swirl about the free agent’s future. Both the Oilers and the Flames are said to be interested in Tucker’s talents.
“There aren’t any rumours coming from here, I can assure you that,” insists Leaf G.M. John Ferguson Jr. “Nothing’s changed on our end.”
Or on Tucker’s.
“The way I look at it … by the time I come back it’s like getting an acquisition anyway. I can look at myself as being traded to Toronto. Let’s put it that way.”
Both sides characterize the hunt for a new contract as “positive”.
But the temporarily shelved and still current Leaf isn’t thinking about what might happen.
“Am I worried about it? No,” he shrugs. “They’d love to have me and I’d love to stay here. In an ideal world everything would work out and it would be done already but that’s not the case.
“We’ll work towards it and we’ll continue to work towards it.”
Tucker’s sole consolation is the improved play of his mates. He’s just anxious to get back out there and add his own unique contribution.
As soon as he can put his best foot forward.
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