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Columbus Blue Jackets put Mike Commodore (and his red afro?) on the IR

Mike Commodore, Steve Downie

Columbus Blue Jackets’ Mike Commodore, left, and Tampa Bay Lightning’s Steve Downie chase a loose puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, March 30, 2010, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

AP

Sadly, the NHL will see far less red afros for the time being.*

That’s because the Columbus Blue Jackets put defenseman and occasional afro enthusiast Mike Commodore on the injured reserve today. He apparently went down with an “upper body injury” during the Blue Jackets’ October 9 game in Stockholm, Sweden.

He’s one of the NHL’s most colorful characters, even when he isn’t rocking that ginger ‘fro or taking awkward half-naked photos with his winnings from Super Bowl bets. That colorful nature shows through in his Twitter account, among other things.

As far as Commodore the defenseman, not the character, he’s a been of an up-and-down guy. When he’s on top of his game, he can be quite useful, though. He was a valuable part of a Carolina Hurricanes team that won a Stanley Cup during the 2005-06 season and also helped the Calgary Flames come within a game of winning a Cup in the final season before the lockout.

* - Actually, Commodore doesn’t always grow out his hair to red afro from what I know, it might even be the equivalent of a playoff beard (on his skull). But are you going to complain about afro jokes? I sure hope not.