Tampa Bay Lightning Report: Did Ryan Callahan Back Himself Into A Corner?

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Ryan Callahan has spent almost the entire season on the Injured List due to his surgically repaired hip, bearing the question, did he return too soon?

The Tampa Bay Lightning received some pretty bad news at the onset of the off-season. On June 21^st, just under one month after being eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals by the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Lightning would receive news one of their key players would be down for an extended period of time.

You see, this was the day the news broke Tampa Bay Lightning alternate captain Ryan Callahan underwent successful surgery to repair a labral tear in his right hip. It was believed this would cause him to miss around five months away from the ice. This was particularly devastating news for Callahan.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Not only would his injury mean he would no longer be able to represent Team USA at the upcoming World Cup of Hockey, but he would also be forced to miss at least the first month of the 2016-17 season, which was scheduled to open on October 13^th against the Detroit Red Wings.

Surprisingly enough, the 31-year-old Lightning forward would make his return to the ice a little sooner than initially expected. Callahan would make his triumphant return to the ice on October 30^th as the Lightning took on Cally’s former team, the New York Rangers. It was quite a fitting return for the former Rangers captain.

Cally wouldn’t find himself on the scoresheet in his first game back, but just one game later Callahan would register an assist in the second period against the New York Islanders on a goal from Lightning forward Brian Boyle. Little did Lightning fans know, just 16 games later, Callahan would be on the injured list once again.

On January 7^th, it would be announced Callahan was once again having issues with his surgically repaired hip. One week later, the Lightning would announce Ryan Callahan was expected to miss another four weeks due to his injury.

This brings us to where we are now. Four weeks have come and gone and there is still no official word on a potential return date for the Lightning alternate captain. The current situation opens up so many questions about Callahan’s injury.

Over the next couple of pages, we will take a look at some of the burning questions revolving around Ryan Callahan’s current injury and see if we can add some much-needed perspective to the situation.

1. Why didn’t Callahan have the surgery done when the problem first occurred?

The problem with Ryan Callahan’s injured hip didn’t just occur in June when he had the issue attended to. In fact, Callahan began having difficulties with his right hip around the halfway point in the 2015-16 season. Unfortunately, the issue continued to hinder him heading into the postseason as well.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Once the halfway point in the season came around, it was apparent there was something wrong with Callahan, but no one could quite put their finger on it. Many just dismissed any potential injury under the guise if there was something wrong; the team wouldn’t possibly let him play, would they?

Unfortunately, this was not the case. When you take a look back at his numbers from the 2015-16 season, you can definitely tell Cally wasn’t his normal self. In the 73 games he played last season, he was only able to bring home 10 goals and 18 assists for a total of 28 points. This was a far cry from the 54 point season he had one season earlier.

Reasonably speaking, there is really only one reason a player would try to play through the pain like Callahan did. First and foremost, Ryan Callahan is an integral part of the team. In addition to being a veritable force on the ice, he is a major part of the Lightning’s leadership core.

At the point his hip began bothering him last season, the Lightning was attempting to make a real push at the postseason. The Lightning had a much better chance at achieving their goal with their team intact. This was more than likely the biggest contributing factor to Callahan’s decision to play through the pain.

At the same time, could the delay in treatment have made the situation much worse than it needed to be? Who is to say if he had the injury looked at back then he would have been forced to miss the final half of the season, or even any potential postseason the Lightning may have had?

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Unfortunately, we are writers and not medical doctors; therefore there is no way to tell if the situation would’ve ended any differently.

However, having injured our hip before (not to the extent of Callahan’s, though) we are well aware how important it can be to get an injury treated as soon as possible. At the same time, while we may have been involved in High School sports at the time, being a professional athlete is a much bigger deal.

One may never truly know what could have been if Callahan had made a different decision on his treatment. Maybe he would have been back in time for last year’s postseason, maybe not. Maybe he would be playing right now, maybe not. Unfortunately, it’s hard to look back at the path not traveled once a different path has been chosen.

2. Did Ryan Callahan Return From Injury Too Soon?

When Ryan Callahan underwent surgery on June 21^st, it was initially believed the Lightning alternate captain would be forced to miss five months away from the ice. This would’ve placed him with a return date of November 21^st.

Tampa Bay Lightning

As most Lightning fans know by now, Callahan made his return to the ice on October 30^th. This means Cally made his return to the ice four months and nine days after his surgery. While the almost three weeks separating his return date from his estimated return date may not seem like a lot when you’re talking about an injury (especially one surgery-related) mere days can be determining factor.

Honestly, it shouldn’t surprise anyone as to why Callahan returned on the specific date he did. As we mentioned previously, the Tampa Bay Lightning were set to take on the New York Rangers, Callahan’s former team, on this particular date. His return sure made for a heck of a storyline.

Unfortunately, given the fact Callahan played a mere 18 games before heading back to the Injured List, one could easily question whether or not he could’ve benefitted from the additional three weeks of recovery before making his return.

As we mentioned before, we are not medical doctors. Obviously, someone had to clear him in order for him to make his return to the ice. At the same time, having experienced a number of injuries in the past ourselves, it cannot be overstated how much a mere couple of days can mean to someone’s recovery.

Coming from the standpoint of a fan, and someone who has no manner of medical training other than basic first aid, it almost feels as if Callahan’s return to the ice was a little rushed and may very well have hurt him in the long run. This is definitely one of those times we hope we are wrong, but it’s definitely not looking good.