A week ago, the Edmonton Oilers faithful collectively held their breath as their fearless leader, Connor McDavid, left the ice in their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. It would be a matter of days until the sigh of relief was let out and it was disclosed that McDavid’s injury was not as serious as initially feared.
Ankle injuries can come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes, they can pose a very serious cause for concern. Today, we will briefly discuss different ankle injuries.
Disclaimer: this is not a medical article and it is not meant to provide medical advice. Rather, this is written from a perspective of a curious hockey fan trying to understand ankle injuries. For any questions regarding ankle injuries, please seek professional medical advice.
Ankle sprains
The ankle joint is surrounded by a number of ligaments that hold it together and stabilize it. When one of these ligaments is stretched or ruptured, you end up with something called an ankle sprain. Given the movement seen in a lot of court sports like basketball, it is not uncommon to see this kind of injury there where the high intensity and quick changing pace puts someone at risk for making one wrong or twisting move and spraining their ankle.
Depending on the symptoms and the assessment, X-rays may sometimes be done to rule out another type of injury: ankle fracture. Management depends on the severity of injury and can initially involve conservative measures like ice, rest, and ankle supports. Recovery timeline can be influenced by the degree of injury, ranging from a few weeks to a few months.
When thinking about McDavid’s ankle injury, I suspect that an ankle sprain is a very real possibility, given the timeline for when he will return to play. McDavid is a resilient player who has not missed too much time with injuries since his rookie year. The hope is that this does not become a lingering concern and that he achieves full recovery in order to return to the team that is looking to go on a winning streak.
Ankle fractures
Ankle joint itself is made up of three bones coming together. When a force is applied that causes one (or more) of these bones at the ankle joint to break, an ankle fracture is the result. There are different ways by which ankle fracture can be categorized or described and these can depend on different factors such as location of the fracture.
Treatment of these fractures is based on a number of different factors such as location and impact on the surrounding area (eg. if the fracture is open or not). Because of this, the treatment may not always include surgical repair. The recovery timeline for these is quite varied but can take anywhere from weeks to months and beyond.
We recently saw an ankle fracture in the NHL when the Los Angeles Kings’ Drew Doughty crashed into the boards in a scary moment in the pre-season. He underwent surgery shortly afterwards and the recovery timeline on this type of injury has left Doughty month-to-month. His return to action will be slow and gradual to help the fracture heal and the ankle strength to build back up to minimize the risk of reinjury.
Achilles’ tendon rupture
Located in the back of the leg, Achilles’ tendon helps some of the leg muscles to move the foot in the downward pointing motion. The classic story of someone hearing a “pop” or a “shot” or feeling like someone kicked them in the back of the leg is what is often described when discussing an Achilles tendon rupture.
Depending on the degree of injury, this can sometimes be treated non-operatively (eg. with proper positioning of the ankle/foot in a splint or a cast) or in the operating room by repairing the tendon tear. Recovery of these injuries can be prolonged and vary based on the severity and the treatment route chosen. It is not unreasonable for see these injuries take anywhere from six months to a year to properly recover.
These are not overly common in hockey, however Max Pacioretty (now of the Toronto Maple Leafs) has suffered this injury twice in the last few seasons. Originally, he ruptured his Achilles in an offseason training incident in August. When he eventually returned to play around five months later in January, he only managed to stay in the lineup for two weeks and five games before suffering the same injury. This time, he missed nearly an entire year before finally debuting the next season at the beginning of the next January.
What to expect from McDavid’s impending return from injury
As mentioned, it seems that the injury McDavid suffered was likely low severity. He tried to finish out his shift, getting up and continuing skating after injuring his ankle and was on the ice testing it out on his own within a couple of days. He has been seen skating just one week after the initial two to three week timeline was announced, with a possible return on Saturday being teased by the player and coach.
We have seen it in the past that McDavid is able to recover and return from injuries quickly, and this time is no exception. There is always a worry that he is rushing back and either won’t be 100% healthy while playing or putting himself at greater risk of reinjury and missing even more time. However, with the amount of support staff in his own camp and with the Oilers organization, there are plenty of experienced opinions signing off on his recovery process and return to the lineup.
Since he is a player whose best asset is his speed, agility, and footwork, he will need to make sure that his ankle is strong enough to handle his playstyle on his return. Any lingering effects will make a significant impact on his performance.
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
