The Canadian: In the qualifying race, Cole Cofield says he’ll play

If it were up to him, Cole Cofield He will play again. His season will not end. And he will still train on the ice alongside teammates he already misses.

But for his own good, it was better to stop everything immediately. And he hides his stick. just in case…

“They did it for real. With my skis, too,” I preferred to laugh at a sniper CanadianFriday, as he answered questions from reporters for the first time since the club announced last Saturday that surgery on his right shoulder had ended his campaign.

“If we are looking for the playoffs, there is no doubt that I will continue to play. It was not up to me to decide to stop playing, but in the circumstances I think it is the best decision in the long run. It is difficult to come to the conclusion that this is for the best, but In the long run, it was the right thing to do.”

Cofield, who will have surgery Wednesday in Vail, Colorado, revealed his first injury on Dec. 23 when he fell during a game against stars in Dallas. He says he then dislocated a shoulder, but after “putting it back in place”, he felt he could still play and wasn’t worried about the severity of his injury.

“It wasn’t that bad,” he said.

But another fall during a game, this time in Nashville vs Predators On January 3, he prompted the team to undergo further testing which revealed the risks the star player was taking by continuing to play.

“It’s hard to accept the risk factor, but I didn’t want to hurt myself more than before and it has long-term effects. Coming to this conclusion was easy because there were people around me that I trusted who assured me that this was the best option. It would be fine.” »

Caufield, who obtained the opinion of three doctors, confirmed that the ongoing contract negotiations between the organization and him had no bearing on the decision to surrender or not to surrender in the current season.

“The most important thing is my health and getting back to 100%. They know what kind of player I am. We’ve had discussions about where my game is, but for me, for them and for my agent, the important thing is the long-term.

“The contract has nothing to do with me stopping playing, it’s just about being healthy and 100% when I’m on the ice.”

“I will catch up”

Without confirming the exact nature, Caufield hinted that he had suffered the same injury as his teammate Josh Anderson (a tear in the upper labrum), the operation took place in the spring of 2020. Coffield will also be operated on by the same surgeon, Dr. Peter Millett.

If Anderson’s rehabilitation has been spread out over seven months at the time, Caufield has limited himself to repeating that he will be back in time for the start of the upcoming confinement season.

“If I was at the end of my career it might be different, but I want to feel 100 per cent for the future and work as hard as possible to get back as quickly as possible. The important thing is that I feel good and that I am at my best with my teammates.”

Canadian fans, don’t worry. Natural goalscorer Cole Cofield, who has been heading for 40 goals, or even 50 for the more optimistic, will return.

“I’m going to make up for all those pucks that won’t get thrown.”