Montreal Canadiens: Former Doctor Sheds Light On Carey Price’s Injury
The Montreal Canadiens gathered recently at a fundraiser event to honour former team physician, Dr. David Mulder who retired from his position as the team’s head physician.
Mulder had an incredible career that spanned 60 years with the Canadiens organization. He started in 1963 as an assistant with the team and did not retire until this past summer when he finally left his role as the team’s head physician.
He started his career at a time when not all goaltenders were even wearing masks and sewed up countless cuts and added an infinite number of stitches to goaltenders faces over those years.
He was also a central figure in helping players who dealt with severe injuries. Trent McCleary needed a tracheotomy after getting hit in the throat with a slapshot in what resulted in a life threatening injury. Mulder was the first to treat McCleary as he left the ice and kept him stabilized until they arrived at hospital.
He was also there when Max Pacioretty was thrown violently into the stanchion at the end of the bench by Zdeno Chara and suffered a broken neck and a concussion. Mulder has pretty much seen it all in his career.
One of his final patients was Carey Price, who had a career ending injury following the 2020-21 season. The potential Hall of Fame goaltender carried the Canadiens to the Stanley Cup Final that spring and then a routine surgery following the season resulted in him never playing hockey again.
There was not a lot said about the nature of his injury until Mulder spoke about it this weekend. He says the team sent Price to New York for a normal knee surgery but when they began to operate they found there was no cartilage left in his femur. Cartilage essentially acts as a shock absorber between bones so they do not rub together.
This means Price played most of that Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2021 with what would have to be intense pain in his knee from a lack of cartilage. He still posted a 2.28 GAA and a .924 SV% as he led the team to series victories over the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and Vegas Golden Knights.
Anyone who watched already knew Price was exceptional in that playoff run, but to learn he was playing while dealing with this injury just makes his performance that much more incredible.
Unfortunately, it also leaves no doubt that his career is over, but the fact he was able to play through intense pain to get the Canadiens to their first Stanley Cup Final in nearly 30 years highlights the ability, dedication and passion he had for the game of hockey.
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