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SPORTS Saturday 21 September 2019
Continued from Page 17 lieves the overall decline
It adds up to putting the in fighting correlates to the
most valuable and vulnera- increase of players feeling
ble players on the ice at risk like they can take liberties
of head contact they can at the crease, while Wash-
do little to avoid and often ington's' Braden Holtby
isn't even penalized. considers it part of how
"We're so dialed in on the players are taught from a
puck, a lot of times you young age now.
don't see guys come from "Most of those plays that
the side," New York Rang- are happening aren't old-
ers goalie Henrik Lundqvist er guys that have been
said. "As a player, you can around," Holtby said. "It's
always adjust your body, the younger generation
but if we adjust our posi- where they've grown up
tioning, we open up the with there's no fear to go to
net. You just have to stand the crease and that kind of
there and I think in a lot of thing."
situations hope for the best Others point to the incon-
when people come run- sistency of goaltender in-
ning into you." terference calls, which can
Hoping for the best isn't ex- be as lenient as waving off
actly a reassuring strategy, a goal with no penalty and
but goalies say there is not as severe as a two-minute In this Jan. 19, 2019, file photo, Boston Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask (40) is attended to on the
much else they can do. minor. Holtby and his peers ice as teammates Zdeno Chara, Brad Marchand (63) and Patrice Bergeron (37) look on after Rask
sustained a concussion in a collision with New York Rangers center Filip Chytil during the first pe-
Rask, who saw Chytil com- say a minor penalty is not riod of an NHL hockey game in Boston.
ing, said goalies mostly are much of a deterrent to Associated Press
at the mercy of their team- keep players from crashing
mates, opponents and the the net in hopes of a goal. concussions over the past crease and can be difficult Rask said spotters are do-
officials. Tampa Bay's Andrei Vasi- four seasons, Vegas for- to avoid. ing a good job of being
"You've got to trust that levskiy, the reigning Vezina ward Jonathan Marches- "As a forward, your job is to selective with goalies, who
your D-men are going to Trophy winner, said a two- sault tries to be conscious get to the net, to get to the are becoming more ac-
be there to help protect minute minor penalty isn't of that when he goes to front of the net," Slavin said. cepting of looking out for
you and with the referees equitable to a goalie get- the net. "You're trying to stop them their health.
calling penalties and stuff ting a concussion. "For me, it's just common as a defenseman from get- "You need to take respon-
with goaltender interfer- "I think the league has to sense," Marchessault said. ting to the net, and they're sibility on yourself to real-
ence that they're going (change) the rule," Vasi- "Goalies have no protec- trying to be that net-front ize if something's not right
to try and protect us, too," levskiy said. "Maybe it's a tion for that. They're there in presence. that you need to at least
said Anaheim Ducks starter few-game suspension." their net and I think every- Everything's kind of collid- get checked out," Gibson
John Gibson, who missed a The NHL in recent years has body should respect more ing at the net, so I don't added. "With all the pro-
combined 10 games with taken steps to reduce hits of their crease and be how much you can actu- grams that they have now,
two separate concussions to the head. Rule 48 institut- more severe, I think, on the ally stop that from happen- maybe they miss it and
the last two years. "What ed in 2010 makes virtually goalie interference (penal- ing." you're not feeling quite
you try to do is know where any hit with contact to an ties)." Concussion spotters in 2016 right, usually the trainer will
guys could be coming from opponent's head a pen- Defenders have to think were given the authority come and ask you if you're
so you can brace rather alty, but Holtby said head about it, too. to remove a player from a not OK or you feel some-
than hitting you and you're contact to goalies is "not Carolina's Jaccob Slavin game if he exhibits visible thing, and then there's little
kind of blindsided." treated the same as every- said collisions like Chytil signs of a concussion, and tests you can go do in the
Goalies have different the- where else on the ice for and Rask happen when it applies to goalies. The back. And obviously if that
ories on why concussions some reason." players don't have the right policy came under fire ear- doesn't work, you've got to
and head injuries are up in Knowing teammate Marc- positioning, which is some- ly because backup goalies take some responsibility on
recent years. Andre Fleury has missed 38 thing that starts before were coming in cold at im- yourself to say, 'I'm not feel-
Ben Bishop of Dallas be- games with three separate the puck gets close to the portant junctures of games. ing quite right.'"q

AP Source: Altered doping data could restart Russian scandal

AP National Writer to confirm doping posi- there is a report indicating doping cases, the Athletics pete as neutral athletes.
The Russian anti-doping tives stemming from the the data might have been Integrity Unit (AIU), are also One theory is that because
agency could face sus- country's plans to cheat so manipulated before it was expected to review the the revamped and rein-
pension again based on athletes could win medals handed over, according information while in Doha, stated RUSADA has been
information indicating at the 2014 Sochi Olympics the person familiar with the Qatar, next week for track meeting testing bench-
data from the Moscow and other events. report, who spoke to AP world championships. marks set for it by WADA,
drug-testing lab had been Handing over the data but requested anonymity The IAAF will receive a re- and because it didn't have
manipulated before being was among the critical because the report had port — one that could in- anything to do with the
delivered to the World An- requirements for the re- not been made public. clude this information — manipulation of the data,
ti-Doping Agency earlier instatement, and WADA WADA's compliance re- from a task force that has it could have a good
this year, a person familiar extended a Dec. 31, 2018 view committee is expect- upheld the Russian track chance of winning a case
with the case told The As- deadline by more than ed to present the informa- team's suspension from in- in front of the Court of Ar-
sociated Press. two weeks, then deemed tion to the agency's ex- ternational competition 11 bitration for Sport. If ma-
WADA reinstated Russia's its negotiations a success ecutive committee, which times since its federation nipulation is proven, WADA
anti-doping agency (RU- when it received the data. meets Monday in Tokyo. was first banned in June would also have to decide
SADA) after gaining ac- But eight months later, and Track and field's governing 2016. Worlds start next Fri- whether it could win cases
cess to long-sought-after with the Tokyo Olympics body, the IAAF, and the or- day, and at least 129 Rus- against Russians with data
data that was to be used less than a year away, ganization that handles its sians are slated to com- that is now unreliable.q