Banged Up Blackhawks

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Oct 24, 2009 4:15PM

After a hot start to the season, the Blackhawks find themselves losers of two games in a row and with a few injuries that might keep some key players from their lineup. Brent Seabrook and Jonathon Toews are both questionable for tonight's game against Nashville after both suffered injuries from hard hits - possibly concussions - in their game against Vancouver earlier this week. The 'Hawks have been without Ben Eager for seven games due to a concussion. According to a report in the Tribune:

"In most cases with a Grade 1, or simple concussion, we have to make sure they're at least a week of being symptom-free, but that will vary," said Sherwin Ho, a former Hawks team physician and current Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Chicago and director of its Sports Medicine Fellowship Program. "Some of that is based on a doctor's judgment. We have to have them completely symptom-free before we let them back on the ice. If (Toews) is symptom free for three or four days I think that's reasonable."

Toews and Seabrook, and eventually Eager (who has a history of concussions), will undergo a battery of tests before they can return. Those can contain both physical and neurological exams, including a written test.

"We give them a test to make sure the brain is working correctly and the bruising or concussion is fully resolved," Ho said. "We look at symptoms, but then we also want to test the function of the brain ... and make sure it's equal to their preseason score or preseason function."

Neither Seabrook or Toews have practiced since their injuries on Wednesday.