Wayne Simmonds played the entire 2017-18 season injured
There was some speculation Flyers’ forward Wayne Simmonds was playing injured this past season. Nobody knew it was this bad.
The Wayne Train did reach the 20-goal mark for the fifth consecutive season, but he never really looked like himself, finishing with his lowest point total (46) since 2012-13.
Simmonds revealed today he had been playing with a torn pelvis since training camp. He also announced he pulled his groin in October before later breaking his ankle in the same month. That wasn’t the end of his injuries, though.
Wayne Simmonds injury timeline
• Enters training camp with torn pelvis.
• Oct. 17: pulled groin
• Oct. 19: broken teeth from Mattias Ekholm’s stick
• Late Oct: breaks ankle from Shayne Gostisbehere snapshot
• Feb. 16: tore ligament in his hand.
— Dave Isaac (@davegisaac) April 25, 2018
Despite all the injuries, Simmonds still played in 75 games this season. He didn’t miss any action until February, when he was ruled out for two-to-three weeks with an upper-body injury.
There’s a reason it’s common knowledge around the NHL that it’s probably best to avoid getting in a fight with the Wayne Train.
Good advice, @PKSubban1.
(via @EpixHD) https://t.co/T8oAmb7Zyg
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 7, 2016
Simmonds was recently nominated for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, presented “to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey.”
Simmonds was heavily involved in the community off the ice, but also battled through injuries all season on the ice.
There’s hockey tough, and then there’s Wayne Simmonds tough.