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Wednesday, October 28, 2009 2:49 PM

Boyd sidelined with flu bug

Eric Duhatschek

On the morning of tonight’s pivotal date with the league-leading Colorado Avalanche, Calgary Flames centre Dustin Boyd was nowhere to be found, the latest NHL player to come down with the flu – and forced into isolation from his teammates.

This, of course, goes against the normal NHL ethic – that a player, injured or felled by an illness, attempt to play unless he is absolutely bed-ridden.

“That’s a little bit more of the old-school thinking that goes along with coaches who’ve been around for a long time,” agreed Flames’ defenceman Robyn Regehr. “For us as players, though, we don’t want guys who are sick around because even it’s one guy, he can affect the group – 20 or 22 guys.

“For the better of the team, you gotta make a decision with your head, not with your heart.”

The Flames were scheduled to get their seasonal flu shots later in the day – with the H1N1 vaccine probably still a couple of weeks away. Still, with the Avalanche losing Peter Budaj to the strain; the Oilers Ladislav Smid just returning and the Capitals announcing Wednesday that Quinton Laing has swine flu, it looks as if the virus is making its way through the NHL – and the precautions are underway.

“They have team doctors for a reason,” said Flames’ coach Brent Sutter. “We trust the medical staff.”

At 38, the oldest member of the Flames’ is Craig Conroy. Does his age provide him with extra immunity?

“Hopefully, it’s going to bypass me,” he said. “I’ve definitely heard it’s not that much fun, so I’d much rather not want to get sick.”

The Flames’ light early-season schedule has been a contributing factor to keeping everyone, except Boyd now, healthy.

“We haven’t had to fly on airplanes, or do anything that puts us in close proximity to anyone who is infected,” said Conroy, noting that the team has adopted all the recommended precautions to keep the flu at bay.

“We used to have four or five water bottles that everybody shared. Now, a lot of times, you have your own water bottle. You don’t want to share water; you don’t want to share razors or towels. You do the best you can.

“Obviously, it’s going to get you if it’s going to get you, but you try your best.”

As for Colorado, with Budaj convalescing at home and rookie Tyler Weiman acting as back-up, the NHL’s leading goaltender, Craig Anderson, will make his 13th consecutive start.

“I think we’ve done a terrific job in quarantining the issue there (Budaj) there and making sure everybody’s healthy and staying hydrated and making sure it doesn’t spread through the team,” said Anderson.

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Globe On Hockey Contributors

David Shoalts

David Shoalts, a native of Wainfleet, Ont., joined The Globe in 1984 as a layout and copy editor in the sports section. He attended the University of Waterloo and Conestoga College. After graduating from Conestoga with a journalism diploma in 1978, Shoalts worked at the Calgary Herald and the Calgary Sun, and later the Toronto Sun.

In 1986, Shoalts went back to the writing side of the business. He was the CFL reporter for The Globe for four years and then switched to hockey. He has covered the Toronto Maple Leafs and the NHL ever since and became a hockey columnist in 2003. Among the most memorable events Shoalts has covered are the final hockey game at the old Chicago Stadium (between the Maple Leafs and Blackhawks) and the men's and women's gold-medal hockey games at the 2002 Winter Olympics. He is also the author of a book of humour, Tales From The Toronto Maple Leafs, and co-author with retired Globe columnist William Houston of Greed and Glory, The Fall of Hockey Czar Alan Eagleson.

 
Allan Maki

Allan Maki

Allan Maki joined the Globe in 1997, after spending 19 years as a reporter and columnist at the Calgary Herald. Born in Thunder Bay, Ont., Maki graduated from the Ryerson School of Journalism in 1977.

A past president of the Football Writers of Canada, Maki has covered every Grey Cup since 1980. He's been to seven Olympic Games and covered everything from rodeos to the World Series to the Super Bowl.

A regular commentator on radio and television, Maki hosted a sports program for two years on CBC Newsworld. He has won several awards for his writing and was nominated for a National Newspaper Award in 1995.

 
Eric Duhatschek

Eric Duhatschek

Eric Duhatschek was the winner of the Hockey Hall Of Fame's Elmer Ferguson award for "distinguished contributions to hockey writing" in 2001. A graduate of the University of Western Ontario's grad school of journalism, he began covering hockey in 1978 and after spending 20 years covering the NHL and the Calgary Flames, joined globeandmail.com in September, 2000, where he writes a five-time-a-week NHL column.

A frequent contributor to Hockey Night in Canada's Satellite Hot Stove segment, he has covered four Winter Olympics, 19 Stanley Cup finals, every Canada Cup and World Cup since 1981, plus two world championships. Most recently, he was appointed as the newest member of the Hockey Hall Of Fame's annual Selection Committee.