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Giroux leaves Germany, returns to North America after neck injury

Claude Giroux

Philadelphia Flyers’ Claude Giroux (28) carries the puck in the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh, Thursday, Dec. 29, 2011. The Flyers won 4-2. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

AP

What began as a “little neck injury” has turned into cause for concern.

That’s the word out of Philadelphia on Tuesday, as star Flyers forward Claude Giroux prepared to leave German club Eisbaeren Berlin and return to North America to have his neck injury examined.

News of Giroux’s departure was first reported by Oliver Koch of Hockeyweb.de, later confirmed via a tweet from the Eisbaren organization.

Giroux suffered the injury during a league game last Friday after being checked in the head by a Krefeld Pinguine player, but initially brushed it off as a minor issue.

“Just a little neck injury,” Giroux told the Philadelphia Daily News. "[Don’t] read too much into it.”

Now, it appears the ailment was more serious than first thought.

According to a rough translation of Koch’s report, Giroux will head to Atlanta to see a “specialist” for further testing. The report also claims Giroux underwent standard head- and neck-injury tests in Berlin following Friday’s game, but was complaining of “feeling unwell” -- thus, the move to Atlanta.

It’s worth noting that concussion specialist Ted Carrick, who famously worked with Sidney Crosby, has a clinic at Life University in Atlanta.

News of Giroux’s injury has to be concerning for the Flyers organization. He’s been sidelined by concussions twice in his career -- he missed five games during the 2008-09 season and another four during the 2010-11 campaign.

Update: Sounds like Giroux is in Atlanta to see Carrick, according to Frank Seravalli of the Philadelphia Daily News...

Giroux’s agent Pat Brisson tells Daily News he is visiting Dr. Ted Carrick in Atlanta, same doc who treated Sidney Crosby’s concussion.

— Frank Seravalli (@DNFlyers) November 20, 2012

Brisson also says Giroux seeing Dr. Carrick is a “precaution” and that they “don’t believe it’s serious.”

— Frank Seravalli (@DNFlyers) November 20, 2012

Update 2: This time, from ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun...

Claude Giroux via text message says he’ll be ``fine.’' Agent Pat Brisson says decision to have Giroux go see Dr. Carrick is precautionary

— Pierre LeBrun (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) November 20, 2012