TAMPA -- Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning said he broke his right foot in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First Round series against the Florida Panthers.
Hedman, who was wearing a boot on his foot Friday, said the injury happened in the first period of the 4-2 loss on Monday, but he didn't know the severity until the next day. The defenseman and Lightning captain did not participate in practice Tuesday, but played in Game 5 on Wednesday and had two assists in the 6-3 loss, which eliminated the Lightning from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
"Didn't feel as bad during the game, but woke up the next day in throbbing pain," Hedman said "After a CT [scan] and MRI, I found out it was fractured. I had to try to keep hiding it from you guys (the media) and everyone else."
Hedman said he wouldn't be able to begin his offseason workouts for a few weeks, but expects he'll be ready for training camp and doesn't believe the injury will have any long-term effects.
"They say Viking blood heals faster," Hedman said. "So hopefully that's the case for this one."
Hedman went on to add that several of his teammates were banged up, but many of them were willing to go as far as the playoff run would take them.
General manager Julien BriseBois also said forward Oliver Bjorkstrand did not play in the postseason because of a left thigh compartment syndrome that happened on April 11 in a game against the Detroit Red Wings. There is no timetable for his return.
Bjorkstrand needed emergency surgery the following morning when Lightning physician Dr. Sean Lannon noticed major swelling in his leg during an in-home visit.
"I don't remember if it was a shot or hit that injured Oliver, but he finished the game and left the rink a little stiff," BriseBois said. "Over the course of the night, his leg was swelling and Dr. Lannon made a house call at 2 a.m., saw how serious the injury was, with bleeding in his leg, rushed him to the ER and performed surgery on him in the middle of the night. If they hadn't acted that quickly, the injury and rehab would have been considerably more serious."
Other Lightning injuries included forwards Anthony Cirelli (grade 2 MCL sprain in his right knee), Yanni Gourde (broken finger), Nikita Kucherov (left hand) and Brandon Hagel (concussion from a hit by Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad in Game 4).
Ekblad was suspended two games for the hit and will miss Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Second Round against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
"I know they're accidents in hockey and there are hits that are made that your shoulder is down and maybe it catches the head," Hagel said. "The sport is fast, it happens very often and you don't like to see it obviously."
Hagel, who was suspended for Game 3 after receiving a five-minute major for interference due to a hit on Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov, left Game 4 after the hit and did not play in Game 5.
Without Hagel (35 goals, 55 assists) and Bjorkstrand (21 goals, 25 assists), Tampa Bay's scoring depth was limited, but BriseBois said each team was dealing with injuries and part of playoff success is the ability to overcome them.
"Game 1, Bjorkstrand Isn't there, Cirielli's not there...most of the game he's not there, and Gourde's got a broken hand he's trying to figure out during the game," BriseBois said. "They add up. Then we have a game where Hagel is suspended and another where he barely plays. That being said, I'm convinced Florida has a bunch of injuries too. That's part of what you have to overcome to win a championship."
