Sean Monahan tied a career high with 31 goals and set a new personal best with 64 points in a career-low 74 games this season. Those numbers are made all the more impressive, however, when you consider he played through considerable discomfort for much of the 2017-18 campaign.
The Calgary Flames forward told reporters Monday at the team’s locker clean out that he has undergone four separate surgeries since being shut down for the season in late March.
Monahan first had left wrist reconstruction surgery, followed by two hernia surgeries and a groin procedure. The wrist injury in particular is something the 23-year-old said had been bothering him for a long time.
“I felt like I was playing with one hand for a while,” Monahan said. “I lost all my grip strength in my hand. It definitely limits you. At the end of the day, you try to go out there and perform at the best ability you can.”
The Brampton, Ont., native was shut down by his team once the Flames were eliminated from playoff contention. His injuries were not disclosed then but Curtis Lazar said at the time: “It’s crazy that he’s able to play at the level he is with what he’s dealing with.”
Monahan has 281 points in 393 regular-season games since breaking into the league in 2013 after being selected sixth overall by the Flames that year. His 138 goals ranks 18th in the NHL during that span.
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