On the Ice With Isaac: Update on Claude Giroux and a Violation of Rules

NEWARK – It turns out Flyers center Claude Giroux is human after all.

The captain was supposed to test his left ankle, cut by the skate of Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk Friday night, in a pregame warmup Saturday against the New Jersey Devils.

Coach Craig Berube was optimistic, hoping that his franchise center would be able to suit up for a 169th consecutive regular-season game.

Instead, the ironman streak is broken.

Giroux couldn’t even dress for pre-game warmups and was scratched for the first time since April 7, 2012, when he missed the last game of that season with an “upper-body injury.”

“I think it’s just how he feels,” Berube said before the game. “I’m not sure, I’ve never had that. I’m sure he just wants to see how it feels. I can’t really comment on it besides that.”

When Giroux went down in the third period of Friday night’s loss, there was initially fear of a worse fate. Both Giroux and Berube immediately had visions of Ottawa defenseman Erik Karlsson, who missed 10 weeks in 2013 with a severed Achilles tendon.

Giroux spoke after the game, saying that he was “probable” to play Saturday against the Devils.