***This was posted earlier today in my blog, "Nothing But Leafs", on Fan590.com***
TORONTO (Sep 24) -- Though the Maple Leafs say they expect Kyle Wellwood to return within four weeks of the groin surgery he had on Saturday, there is no guarantee that Wellwood will be able to dodge the ailment for any length of time in the future. And, according to a former Maple Leafs’ medical person with lots of experience in this area, the young centerman’s career could be in some jeopardy. “I’m very concerned about his injury flaring up the way it did after a full summer of rest,” said the source. “These types of groin-muscle issues are very tricky at the best of times. But, a sports hernia usually will respond, long-term, to corrective surgery. The fact Kyle had to go under the knife again might indicate he has a natural weakness in the area, and it may bother him repeatedly.”
When asked for his opinion on what level of control the Leafs have in this situation, the medical person said, “It depends on the individual. Quite often, a team will take a very cautious approach to a player -- particularly a young player -- with a recurring groin issue. And, that easy approach can be sufficient. In this case, I think the Leafs will obviously go slowly with Wellwood, but it may not matter. If he has a chronic problem with the muscles in that area of his body, he’ll likely aggravate them again once he resumes game-type skating. It’s a part of the body that a hockey player cannot help but exert, and the careers of many NHLers have been hampered over the years because of this problem.”
Wellwood skated with pain in his upper groin/lower abdomen until mid-December of last season before undergoing the hernia surgery. “It may have added to the problem, though I obviously don’t know that, first-hand, because I wasn’t involved in the issue with Kyle,” said the source. “But, if he played with that muscle tear for any length of time last season, it was most definitely the wrong thing to do. I understand why pro hockey players try to push the envelope. They want to play. Their careers aren’t overly long. But, reason has to prevail in situations involving important muscles like those in the groin area.”
A best-case scenario for Wellwood is that the surgery on Saturday in Philadelphia was to correct a minor recurrence of the groin ailment, and was done almost solely to prevent the injury from progressing higher up into the abdomen. Surgery to correct THAT issue can threaten an entire season (as it did for Mathieu Schneider), or end a career (as it did with former Blackhawks and Leafs sniper Al Secord). “The Leafs probably won’t know how well this latest operation worked until Wellwood is back to game-style skating,” said the medical person. “Again, the fact he seemed to come back from the first surgery at the end of last season -- and then had a relapse this fall -- is concerning to me.”
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