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Wednesday, September 8, 1999
Robyn bobbin' along
"I never realized how heavy equipment is," groaned the recuperating defenceman. "Man, that stuff weighs a ton. I must've looked like a tank out there."
Standing in the corridor outside the Flames' dressing room, though, he couldn't suppress a smile.
"But it felt ... great.
"My legs held up pretty well, actually. Because my wind isn't good yet, obviously, my lungs and throat are burning, though. All in all, I'm happy."
Not so far removed from a hospital bed and that frightening brush with death, Regehr skated with all his gear and company for the first time since the tragic car accident just outside of Saskatoon that left two people dead and the Calgary prospect's career in limbo.
"We're going to do everything within reason," he said after a brief, but brisk, 20 minutes on the Saddledome ice. "I want to make progress every day. That's why I left when the guys were starting their 1-on-1s. I don't want any setbacks at this stage of the game."
How long he'll remain at camp is still up in the air. But he'll savour what is allowed him.
"To be back at the rink, around the guys, getting a taste of an NHL camp, is wonderful," he said.
Initially, Regher was flown in to attend the team's annual pre-camp barbecue, to make him feel a part of things. But when management found out he'd been allowed to see the orthopoedic surgeon that performed surgery on his damaged legs ahead of schedule, and everything was progressing nicely, they decided to keep him around.
"I'm riding the bike a lot," Regehr explained, "trying to get back into shape. I'm doing squats, but I've got to watch my range of motion. I don't want to go too deep on the leg presses. This is going to be a gradual process."
But everyone in and around the Flames is encouraged by the steps he's already taken towards returning to hockey.
"Great to see the young lad out there," said coach Brian Sutter. "Talking to Robyn all summer, I knew he'd be back sooner than what everyone was saying or writing. He's a hard-working boy. Today, 20 minutes was enough. Then we'll get him out there for half and hour. Then 35 minutes. And so on and so on."
Initial estimates had him out of the game for the better part of a year.
"I'm going to try to be playing around Christmas time. For me, that would certainly be the nicest present I could recieve," Regehr admitted.
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