Justin Williams Suffers Broken Leg (with Video)

After an 8 day layoff, the Kings season did not exactly resume the way they envisioned. In the 1st period, they were outshot (14-6), out hit (16-12) and out worked. They lost a fight, watched a fluke goal get past the goaltender and trailed 2-1 by the end of the period. But for all of the things that went wrong in the first 20 minutes of play, everything paled in comparison to the injury to the talented right wing Justin Williams. It was like an 8 year old having a horrible night mare—Kings fans just wanted someone to give them a hug and tell them it was going to be OK.

Williams’ injury was one of those injuries that when you see it happen, you almost have to turn your head away from the screen. His right leg got caught up in the ice, and then he was checked and all of his weight fell back on his leg. As he lay on the ice, it looked like it could have been his ankle, knee, leg or anything else on his lower right extremity. That’s how bad it was.

It was one of those plays that looked harmless during the course of play. It wasn’t until you saw Williams’ painful reaction—and the subsequent replays—until fans saw how serious the injury could be. It wasn’t a huge body check or a hit that would warrant a suspension from the league offices. As horrible as it sounds, it’s just one of those things that happen. Not even Ryan Smyth (who was on the ice during the injury), fully knew what had happened:

“I actually turned up ice, so I didn’t see it… but I think it’s a lower body (injury). Obviously they were favoring his leg. Our thoughts and prayer are with him right now and hopefully he can heal up quickly and try and get back.” –Ryan Smyth

Los Angeles announcer Bob Miller asked the question before the game: Would the 8 days off prove the Kings with rest or rust? It was pretty obvious that the Kings were rusty. Even though that was the question that fans were asking before the game, it was the furthest thing from fans thoughts 4:27 into the game. After 15 games, that was how long the Smyth-Kopitar-Williams line was reunited before the right winger went down in a heap. That’s how long it took after 8 days off for the Kings to suffer yet another injury (in a month that has already seen its share of injuries). That’s how long it took before Williams might have seen his season come to an end.

Seriously? Again? How many freak injuries can one man handle?

Doctors made sure that his right leg was immobilized with an air-cast before he was rolled off the ice on a stretcher. While he was being taken off the ice, Miller and Jim Fox related the injury to Charlie Simmer’s injury in Toronto in 1981. I couldn’t help but wonder how Fox himself was thinking—Fox’s himself saw his career cut short from knee injuries. Regardless, neither player was ever the same after the injuries.

No, I couldn’t help but wonder how much is enough for a player that has suffered serious injury after serious injury. In January of 2003, Williams sprained his left knee and missed the rest of the season. In December of 2007, Williams suffered a torn ACL/MCL on his left knee that also made him miss the rest of his season. Before the 2008-09 season even started, he suffered an Achilles’ tendon injury that caused him to miss the first 2 months of the season. How much can one man take?

Williams left Jobing.com Arena on crutches and is to undergo further evaluation in Los Angeles on Sunday. But after the game, we learned that Head Coach Terry Murray already had an idea of the severity of the injury.

“I haven’t been told, other than that it’s a broken leg. I can’t play doctor. I can’t predict. I have no idea. We’ll take him back on the flight with us tonight, he will see our team doctor and we’ll get the word out tomorrow.”

“I don’t know anything more than that it’s broken. And I said that on the bench. As soon as it happened, I walked over to Jamie Kompon and I said, `I think he broke his leg.’ When he was coming in front of the bench, on the stretcher, pulling his hair, he was hurting. He was hurting a lot.”—Terry Murray (via LA Kings Insider)

I’m sure we’ll find out exactly how serious the injury is sometime on Sunday. Until then, fans will be left with the visual of Williams being carted off the ice in extreme pain wondering how many freak injuries one many can endure. Whether you’re a Kings fan or root for another team in the NHL, you have to be rooting for Williams to come back sooner than later. Enough is enough.