Colonials radio analyst and college hockey connoisseur Mike Prisuta contributes regular commentary to RMUColonials.com.
They were already running low on defensemen and centers, but when
Grant Hebert went down and stayed down early in the second period last Saturday night against Mercyhurst depth was the least of the Colonials' concerns.
"We were concerned for his well-being when he wasn't moving and they were back-boarding him," head coach
Derek Schooley said.
Players on both benches observed in silence.
Goaltender
Justin Kapelmaster momentarily ventured over to where medical personnel were attending to Hebert as Hebert remained prone and motionless in the Mercyhurst defensive zone.
Winger
Nick Prkusic eventually collected Hebert's gloves and helmet.
It was quiet enough inside Colonials Arena that the sounds of Kapelmaster's and Prkusic's skate blades carving the ice was audible to the hushed crowd on Neville Island.
"That was really scary," Prkusic acknowledged in a radio interview between the second and third periods. "We couldn't even see him moving the whole time he was getting stretchered off.
"You could hear a pin drop in the rink."
Eventually, the game resumed.
Mercyhurst's Brendan Riley was given a five-minute major for contact to the head and a game misconduct.
The Colonials responded by allowing a short-handed goal.
"I think our shock led to giving up that short-handed goal," Schooley said."We had to regain our focus."
Robert Morris did so well enough to eventually earn an NCAA-recognized 2-2 tie and an extra point in the Atlantic Hockey Association standings thanks to winger
Michael Coyne's goal in 3-on-3 overtime.
The better news is Hebert, although out indefinitely, was diagnosed with a concussion and is "in the midst of the recovery process," according to a statement released by RMU on Wednesday.
It looked initially as if it could have been much worse.
The concern for Robert Morris now is moving on without Hebert, and without center
Daniel Mantenuto, defenseman
Nick Jenny and defenseman
Bradley Stonnell, all of whom remain out for this weekend's AHA series at Sacred Heart (7:05 p.m., Saturday, and 4:05 p.m., Sunday).
"We're running on bare bones right now," Schooley said. "We're gonna need players to step up in a big way. We're gonna need every one of our healthy guys to take a step."
It's anticipated Mantenuto and Jenny will return sooner rather than later.
And the Colonials intend to bring aboard defenseman Tyler Love from Corpus Christi of the NAHL.
Love, a Moon Township native, will be eligible to participate as an in-season addition on Dec. 15, the day the Colonials are scheduled to conclude a two-game series against Army. Robert Morris is off until January following the Army series.
RMU, Army and Sacred Heart are tied for first place in Atlantic Hockey with 24 points (the Colonials have played one fewer AHA game). Sacred Heart has won three in a row, including a 4-0 win on Nov. 26 at Boston University. Army and RMU split a two-game series on Oct. 19-20 (4-1 Army, 3-0 RMU).
The recent spate of unavailable players has continued a season-long trend.
"We've never had a rash of injuries like this in my 16 years here but we're not going to use that as an excuse," Schooley said. "We're tied for first place, we have tremendous pride in our locker room and we still have some very good players in our lineup.
"It's our job to make sure we find a way to get the job done. We need our best players to be our best players and we need other guys to be better than they've been. We need help from everybody."
