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Lightning's Jon Cooper reveals Alex Killorn had an iron rod put in his leg to be ready for Stanley Cup Finals game
The Tampa Bay Lightning captured their second straight Stanley Cup in 2021-22, defeating the Montreal Canadiens in five games. But the path to repeating as champions wasn’t easy for the Lightning, especially after losing key forward Alex Killorn to a serious injury (a fractured fibula) in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Speaking on NHL on TNT, Lightening's head coach Jon Cooper shared that Killorn faced a choice: let the injury heal naturally and miss the rest of the games, or have a rod surgically implanted in his leg to stabilize the fracture, making a potential Game 6 return feasible.
"He had a choice to let it heal and be out for the rest of the year or have a rod put in incase the game went to Game 6 and he is ready to play. That's the passion these players have," Cooper said.
Remarkably, Killorn was skating just two days after the procedure, driven by his singular focus to hoist the Cup again with his Lightning teammates. Though Tampa Bay closed out Montreal in five games, rendering Killorn's sacrifice unnecessary, the story underscores his selfless commitment.
"Some of the things you do just to get back for the benefit of having to hoist the Stanley Cup," Cooper added.
Before getting injured, Killorn was a key player in the playoffs, scoring 17 points in 19 games.
Blake Coleman heaped praise on Alex Killorn
Blake Coleman had high praise for Alex Killorn's significant contributions to the team. In his statement before Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, Coleman said:
"He's got his fingerprints all over this team. He's a great penalty killer. He plays on our first power-play unit. He's great 5-on-5. Good puck possession guy. He's physical. There's not many things he doesn't do for us.”
Coleman also acknowledged the depth and resilience of the Lightning roster.
“We certainly miss him when he's not in the lineup. Thankfully we've got a next-man-up mentality and a lot of depth in this room. Guys have stepped in and done a great job. There's certainly areas where his presence is missed, but it's just next man up," Coleman said.
Blake Coleman's comments showcase the respect and admiration he has for Alex Killorn.
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