Cavalieri’s leg injury should only require a few days to heal

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ORONO – Less than 24 hours after his freshman point guard was carried from the Alfond Arena hardwood, University of Maine coach John Giannini was breathing a sigh of relief Wednesday afternoon.

Tory Cavalieri’s leg injury has been diagnosed and the 5-foot-11 speedster will likely make a full – and speedy – recovery.

“It’s less severe than what we thought it might be initially,” Giannini said.

Giannini said Cavalieri impacted the peroneal nerve on the outside of his left fibula.

“The nerve was responsible for the pain that he felt throughout his lower leg,” Giannini said. “It is not a lot different from having a deep muscle bruise. It should take a few days to recover.”

Cavalieri will evaluated on a day-to-day basis, and may or may not play against Brown on Saturday in Providence.

Cavalieri collapsed near the scorer’s table late in Tuesday night’s victory over Northeastern after apparently colliding with one of the Huskies.

He was carried from the floor as Giannini and the rest of the Bears watched, fearing the worst.

“Considering how tough of a competitor he is and how widespread the pain was, throughout his leg, I really feared it was a major injury,” Giannini said.

Cavalieri was named the America East rookie of the week Monday for the second time this season.

He has played an average of 25.7 minutes per game in a backup role but is the team’s fourth-leading scorer (8.7 ppg) and its assists leader (4.3 apg). He also ranks among the league’s most accurate free-throw shooters, connecting on 39 of 46 attempts (84.8 percent).

Giannini said he didn’t get a very good look at the play on which Cavalieri was injured, as he collapsed near the hashmark in front of the Northeastern bench.

“My take on it was that there was some kind of contact and he tried to come out of it, take a few steps, and literally collapsed with pain,” Giannini said.

But Giannini pointed out that he wasn’t the only one confused about the circumstances surrounding Cavalieri’s injury.

“Even today, [Tory] was requesting to look at the tape … because he wasn’t sure how it happened,” Giannini said.

Dimitrakos got message

University of Maine junior right wing Niko Dimitrakos got the message sent by coach Shawn Walsh when he was a healthy scratch in the championship game win over Cornell at the Florida Everblades College Hockey Classic last week.

That message was simple: put out in all three zones or take a seat in the stands.

Dimitrakos said he is ready to play intense, two-way hockey beginning with this weekend’s crucial Hockey East series at the University of New Hampshire.

“I have a tendency to get down on myself and take some shifts off,” admitted Dimitrakos, Maine’s top returning point-getter off last year’s team. “You can’t afford to take shifts off. It hurts the team and it hurts you.”

Dimitrakos added, “Some of the highly skilled players in the NHL don’t play defense. But you have to in college hockey. There’s much more emphasis on defense in college.”

Dimitrakos said he has had a productive week in practice and that’s what he needs to build his confidence for a tough series against the Wildcats.

“I’ve been working hard. We’re going to need all the spokes in the wheel working this weekend. I don’t want to be the weak spoke,” said Dimitrakos. He added that he has been frustrated by the rash of injuries he has sustained, including the broken wrist that sidelined him for the first eight games of the season.

“But I’m 100 percent now and my legs are in shape,” said Dimitrakos, who will play right wing on a line with Marty Kariya and Matthias Trattnig.

Dimitrakos has five goals and five assists in nine games.

“He is one of our top 12 forwards. He got the message,” said Walsh.

“Niko has picked up his game this week,” said junior defenseman and co-captain Doug Janik.

Donovan reinjures kidney

Freshman left wing Brendan Donovan, who reinjured his lacerated kidney and is undergoing tests in Boston, may be out for the season, according to Walsh.

Janik is currently using Donovan’s hockey equipment because his was lost on the trip to Florida and still hasn’t been located.

But sophomore center Chris Heisten (sprained knee ligament) could be back as soon as the Boston University series the following weekend. If not, he will probably be ready to make the trip to Boston College on Jan. 26-27.

Heisten was hurt in the 3-2 loss to Boston University on Dec. 8.