For an NHL player like Vancouver Canucks defenseman Luca Sbisa, the worst thing that can happen is an injury in training camp because it takes away the opportunity to prove the player can still compete with his NHL peers.
Sbisa is losing that opportunity, not because of an injury, but because he has been unable to crack Team Europe’s lineup in the World Cup of Hockey, aside from one meaningless game against Canada. Instead, Team Europe has relied on defensemen like Christian Ehrhoff and Dennis Seidenberg, neither of whom have NHL contracts at this time.
In Sbisa’s one game at the tournament, he finished as a minus-one, with two shots, two blocked shots, and a hit in 15 minutes of ice time.