Artemi Panarin finally talks about his leave (not really)

Lost in the aftermath of the New York Rangers overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers was the fact that Artemi Panarin actually spoke to the press for the first time since returning from his leave of absence.   It was the first opportunity for anyone to ask him about the alleged incident in Latvia a decade ago, an allegation that has been uncorroborated by anyone except his former coach who made the accusation.

Panarin was asked directly about it and was succinct in his answer.

“This is probably not the time to discuss it right now, I have nothing to hide. I will address everything after the season, but right now the focus is on the game and not these discussions. ”

The rest of Panarin’s comments were about the game and the season.

When he was asked what he did while he was away to prepare for his ultimate return he said, “I did not really change my routine, maybe I rested more and maybe that’s the lesson, that sometimes you should rest and you’ll play better.”

So there you have it.  The Rangers star has nothing to hide and will address the issue when the season is over and the task at hand, winning hockey games, is over.   Or is it?

An injury connection?

Emily Kaplan of ESPN threw some gasoline on the Rangers fire with a brief item about the Rangers and Panarin.  In the article she cites a source close to Panarin as saying that his departure may have also been connected to an injury.  According to Kaplan, Panarin has been dealing with a nagging back injury for the last few years and it might have flared up.

The speculation is that he didn’t want to rush his return to the ice considering  his injury, especially since he came back from an injury earlier in the season that cost him two games.  Kaplan also notes that Coach David Quinn “isn’t on the strongest ground.”

The questions Kaplan raises are something we have discussed on Blue Line Station.  The simple fact is the allegations were discredited within days of being made.  There were no witnesses and anyone who would have known about it said it never happened.  Combine that with the fact that there were basic inconsistencies in the time frame and geography and nothing about the story made sense.  However, once the allegation was made and thoroughly discredited, there was never any comment from team as his absence stretched to three weeks. An injury would explain a lot.

That raises all kinds of issues surrounding his departure and how the team is being managed, something worth a longer discussion.  It’s just more intrigue in a season that has had its share of strange occurrences.