We’ve read and heard a lot today about the guys who toughed it out and played through the pain over the past couple of weeks: Alex Ovechkin leading the series in scoring despite groin and wrist injuries, John Erskine and Tom Poti each playing with broken foot and still blocking shots, Alex Semin – normally a wizard with the puck – playing with a damaged thumb, Mike Green playing big minutes with a bad shoulder, and Shaone Morrisonn hobbled by groin and ankle injuries.
But what about one of the guys – Jeff Schultz – who couldn’t make a go of it and saw his playoffs cut short by what ended up being a season-ending injury? It turns out (per Caps PR) that Sarge had broken a rib, an injury that occurred before, well, this did in Game 1 of the Rangers series:
Does the injury excuse Schultz’s misplay? Hardly. But it certainly might help to explain his tumble to the ice that followed it – and why we didn’t see him again for the duration of the post-season.
Get well soon, everyone – there’s work to be done.