Kaspars will be a ghost for awhile
Greg Harder, Leader-Post
Published: Monday, September 24, 2007
The first loss of the season may have long-term repercussions for the Regina Pats.
The WHL club was dealt a major blow when import right-winger Kaspars Saulietis sustained a badly separated right shoulder during Friday's season-opening 4-2 win over the host Prince Albert Raiders.
Saulietis is expected to miss up to three months, which amounts to about half the season.
"I'm really disappointed," lamented Saulietis, who trained this summer with his national team in Latvia. "I was so pumped (to come back to Regina). I thought this season would be great for me, then, first shift, first game and everything is done. But I should get over that and keep working. The season is long."
The injury occurred on a seemingly innocent play when Saulietis charged into Prince Albert's zone on the forecheck. He tried to put some heat on the defenceman who went back to retrieve a dump-in, but ended up getting the worst of the collision.
"We looked at each other -- I tried to hit him, he tried to hit me," recalled Saulietis. "He was heavier than me. That's it. I separated my shoulder."
The Pats have a lot invested in Saulietis, who's known as a two-spotter because he counts against both the overage and import quotas. WHL rosters are limited to three 20-year-olds and two Europeans, a fact which often discourages teams from carrying a player who falls under both categories.
Most clubs rely on their imports and 20s to be major contributors. That's especially true of the Pats, who lack proven scoring punch up front.
The loss of Saulietis leaves left-winger Troy Ofukany as their lone overage player. The team's second import is Czech rookie Rudolf Cerveny, who remains a work in progress and was a healthy scratch for two straight games to open the season.
"It's just unlucky," Pats head coach Curtis Hunt said of the injury. "The nice thing is we have enough depth where we can insert people in our lineup. The bad news is we've lost a quality player and a good influence for an extended period of time."
The Pats were counting on a breakthrough campaign from Saulietis, acquired midway through last season in a six-player trade with the Kelowna Rockets. The speedy and often fearless import recorded 19 goals and 34 points in 59 games as a WHL rookie, showing intermittent flashes of his dynamic but raw talent.
For now, that potential will continue to be unrealized.
"He maybe didn't have a great camp but we understand what his strengths are," said Hunt. "Just getting into a role and into a groove would have been nice because he has a certain comfort level. He's comfortable with the group; he has friends now in North America. We'll move forward and try to get him rehabilitated as soon as possible."
Saulietis isn't giving up on his season, either.
"Things happen," he said with a shrug. "It's still 30 games (left after Christmas). I just have to come back, put (out) all my effort and work hard."
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2007
Kaspars will be a ghost for awhile
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