‘I’ve Got A Lot Of Support’

STAMFORD, Conn. — It’s a chilly Friday, both outside and inside the Stamford Twin Rinks.

But upstairs, in a roomy gym with personalized NHL jerseys up and down each wall, Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau goes through the paces under the watchful eyes of a personal trainer at Prentiss Hockey Performance, and Flames Rehab Sports Physiotherapist Scott Cyr.

Huberdeau isn’t here because the Flames are on a five-game, Eastern road trip, though.

It’s because the forward had hip surgery in New York City last week. And here in Stamford, he’s already back building strength with some of the best in the rehabilitation field, working toward his goal of being ready to rejoin his Flames teammates come the fall.

A week on from the procedure, the always affable Huberdeau is pleased with how things are coming along.

“Pretty good,” Huberdeau smiled when asked how he’s feeling. "I mean, it's a long process, but coming out of the surgery, it’s been going pretty well.

“The body’s responding well, and I think it’s obviously progressing very well for the first week.”

Cyr is here as the organization’s eye, helping monitor Huberdeau’s progress and rehabilitation pathway.

But he’s also taking notes from industry leaders; an information-gathering mission, of sorts, to bring back to the Flames as Huberdeau’s recovery continues.

“Jonathan had his surgery at H.S.S. in New York with Dr. (Edwin) Su, who is one of the world's leading specialists in this type of procedure,” Cyr explained. “So out here in Connecticut, we’re here to do rehab with one of the one of the best PTs in this area who seems to do a lot of these rehabs.

“So it was a great opportunity for us to get the rehab started out here with someone that sees a lot of these, which is, you know, quite a unique surgery to begin with, and for us to learn and to bring some stuff back to Calgary so that we can really get Jonathan going and get ready for next season.”

Certainly, Huberdeau would probably like to be anywhere but in this gym. The recovery is challenging and strenuous. But having Cyr by his side makes the days easier.

Teamwork, and friendship, hard at work.

“Scotty's been great,” Huberdeau said. “You know, we got to know each other pretty well, and we're spending a lot of days together and stuff, and just a great guy to have around, and, obviously, helping me.

“I can walk, but I feel on Instagram, you guys see, like, the best things I can do. I have a hard time doing some things, and he's been the guy helping.”

The pair will rejoin the Flames soon, though. Calgary wraps up its five-game road trip Monday night in Detroit and the plan is for both Huberdeau and Cyr to head back to Calgary with the team after that.

And for Huberdeau, one of the team’s leaders on and off the ice, it’s important to be with his teammates as they conclude the 2025-26 campaign, and especially with a six-game homestand on tap for their return to the Stampede City.

“I think it's gonna be good, to be around the guys,” he said. I mean, I'm always appreciating to be around the guys, when they're not on the road, being there with them. I think as a leader, I just wanna be there, go for the rest of the year, and after that, looking forward to the summer and working hard.

“My goal is to come back next year, be ready to go and have that behind me and kind of look forward and be a better player.”

Huberdeau knows to do that will require lots more hard work. More time in the gym, more time with the professionals like Cyr and the Flames medical staff.

But Cyr is optimistic that the Flames forward is on the right track.

“For Jonathan, it's just being active and getting on the hip; it's good, it's stable, it's clean,” Cyr said. “And now it's just developing the muscle around it and getting it moving. That's the biggest thing with this type of surgery is, more often than not, the muscles around the hip often will shut off, or they'll get quiet and lazy.

“So it's our job now to try to wake those up and get them strong again, and get his hip and his body used to moving into areas that he hasn't been able to for a number of years now.”

Huberdeau’s got a goal in mind as well. The 32-year-old is 38 games shy of his Silver Stick, awarded to NHLers who reach 1,000 appearances in the League.

But so, too, he’s got eyes on returning to a sense of normalcy at home. Supporting his fiancée and their young son.

Enjoying the perks that fatherhood has to offer.

“My fiancé's been great. She's always there to support me,” said Huberdeau. “My Mom, my Dad, everybody, so I'm pretty lucky for that. And obviously going back, seeing my little guy, it's gonna be great; I mean, I (haven’t) seen him in two weeks.

“It's gonna be just great to come back and be a dad. We’re gonna all do that together, and I know I've got a lot of support.”