Put Me In, Coach: When Should Injured NHL Players Say Stop?
August 20th, 2010 by Laura Falcon Leave a reply »Regardless of skill level, all hockey players can boast one thing: they're some pretty tough dudes.
Just ask this kid who ate the boards for breakfast .
Or ask Sami Salo who almost lost any hope of future kids .
Pushing aside the tough exterior that is worn like a shield, these are still athletes who are vulnerable to injury. Injuries, unfortunately, happen all too often in the fast and brutal sport.
Interesting enough, the media and fans may never hear of a player's injury until a season is over. In true tough guy form, many NHL players will play through an injury for reasons that include personal pride and to do his job on the team.
These reasons are admirable not only because of the mental toughness required to fight through injury pains, but the selflessness that drives this behavior in the first place.
How much easier would it be on a player to announce that he's injured and cannot partake in daily practices chock-full of repetitive drills or the intensely physical games, especially during the playoffs when each hit is that much harder and each blocked slap shot stings that much more?
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Laura Falcon
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