Player Discussion Is this the end for Klefbom?

[Mr Positive]

I've seen grim health assessments in fanbases before, and they are almost always hyperbole. I even recall people saying Crosby was going to retire in that year, right after he got yet another concussion.

So I'm going to go with history on this and say he'll be back. It makes sense for this retirement option to be out there, just because it takes pressure off of his return.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

Klef slotting in as our 2nd pairing LD to break in Bouch would be outstanding.

 

[BarDownBobo]

I've seen grim health assessments in fanbases before, and they are almost always hyperbole. I even recall people saying Crosby was going to retire in that year, right after he got yet another concussion.

So I'm going to go with history on this and say he'll be back. It makes sense for this retirement option to be out there, just because it takes pressure off of his return.

Way too many people took his quote about not being able to pick up his kids in the future out of context and ran with it, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that Larsson has mentioned numerous times that him and Klefbom talk almost every day and Klef misses the guys and wants to be back out there. There was definitely some concern about if he’d be able to come back but reality was the pandemic was slowing down his ability to see doctors and find out what his options were. Now that he’s had surgery I think there’s a very high chances he’s back next year.

 

[McFlyingV]

I really, really hope Klefbom comes back and can play at a high level again. Without him we're still short a 2nd pair LD, but with him we actually have a really solid defense. It would also mean that is not as crucial to re-sign Barrie and it would give the Oilers more options going into next season.

I'm confident enough in Bouchard and his future that I'd be fine letting Barrie walk if Klef is able to get back. Barrie's starting to show some defensive gaffes with increasing frequency that make me less willing to give him term or money, imo it could be better spent on a goalie/forward. With Bear starting to settle back in, and if Larsson can be retained at a fair price 3.5-4M range I'll be happy with out D going forward.

Next season:
Nurse-Bear/Larsson
Klef-Bear/Larsson
Lagesson (assuming unclaimed in exp)-Bouchard
Russell

Long-term(3-4 years):
Nurse-Bouchard
Klefbom-Broberg
Samorukov/Lagesson-Bear/Larsson

 

[McFlyingV]

Way too many people took his quote about not being able to pick up his kids in the future out of context and ran with it, while simultaneously ignoring the fact that Larsson has mentioned numerous times that him and Klefbom talk almost every day and Klef misses the guys and wants to be back out there. There was definitely some concern about if he’d be able to come back but reality was the pandemic was slowing down his ability to see doctors and find out what his options were. Now that he’s had surgery I think there’s a very high chances he’s back next year.

I looked into his surgeon and he's had some pretty high profile cases. Did double shoulder reconstructions for Gary Roberts late in his career and a labral surgery for Carlos Delgado. Seems to be one of the best shoulder specialists out there, and he's actually a Canadian who moved to Ohio due to terrible funding in Toronto towards his department and research at the hospital he was working out of.

 

[Dorian2]

I haven't kept up at all, but here's a recent article re: hhis hhealth and the expansion draft. Sorry if already posted.

Big Update on Health and NHL Expansion Status of Oilers’ Oscar Klefbom

 

[McOilers97]

I'm confident enough in Bouchard and his future that I'd be fine letting Barrie walk if Klef is able to get back. Barrie's starting to show some defensive gaffes with increasing frequency that make me less willing to give him term or money, imo it could be better spent on a goalie/forward. With Bear starting to settle back in, and if Larsson can be retained at a fair price 3.5-4M range I'll be happy with out D going forward.

Next season:
Nurse-Bear/Larsson
Klef-Bear/Larsson
Lagesson (assuming unclaimed in exp)-Bouchard
Russell

Long-term(3-4 years):
Nurse-Bouchard
Klefbom-Broberg
Samorukov/Lagesson-Bear/Larsson

If he’s able to come back to finish the current contract (2 more years) then great, but I think assuming that Klefbom will still be around in 3-4 years might be a tad ambitious. Though, Broberg should be a regular in that timeframe, so takes some of the potential sting away.

 

[soothsayer]

I looked into his surgeon and he's had some pretty high profile cases. Did double shoulder reconstructions for Gary Roberts late in his career and a labral surgery for Carlos Delgado. Seems to be one of the best shoulder specialists out there, and he's actually a Canadian who moved to Ohio due to terrible funding in Toronto towards his department and research at the hospital he was working out of.

The doctor transfered to the Cleveland Clinic, which is arguably the best hospital in the world. I doubt it had as much to do with the "terrible funding" as it did with him being able to make a million bucks in one of the most prestigious hospitals in the world. That said, probably there was no one better in the world to take care of Klefbom's shoulder.

 

[McFlyingV]

The doctor transfered to the Cleveland Clinic, which is arguably the best hospital in the world. I doubt it had as much to do with the "terrible funding" as it did with him being able to make a million bucks in one of the most prestigious hospitals in the world. That said, probably there was no one better in the world to take care of Klefbom's shoulder.

While financials are always a motivator, there's a story on him from 2003 which at least offers some context on it. There's a lot of Canadian surgeons who leave Canada for bigger bucks in the USA, but from his point of view it seemed a lot more like an opportunity he could have taken far sooner if he had wanted to, and only decided to due to a lack of support in his area of specialization and expertise. Funding for sports medicine isn't exactly the greatest in Canada, and a lot of these specialty surgeons care a lot about being able to make advancements in their area of expertise and the prestige that goes along with it. If it was all about money they would all just go to the USA or higher paying areas of Canada as soon as possible.
Star Canadian sports surgeon leaving for U.S. in frustration

Agreed though, he seems to do some cutting edge surgeries for shoulders and is definitely who I would want operating on my shoulder if I was in Klef's situation.

 

[McFlyingV]

If he’s able to come back to finish the current contract (2 more years) then great, but I think assuming that Klefbom will still be around in 3-4 years might be a tad ambitious. Though, Broberg should be a regular in that timeframe, so takes some of the potential sting away.

Maybe, maybe not. A lot depends on how successful the surgery is on his ability to continue playing (assuming he is able to play again). I agree, that might be getting a bit ahead of ourselves without knowing if he can even return, but if he's able to I don't think it's out of the question that he could have more than 2 years left in the tank at the age of 28 as a Dman.

 

[Zamknij kurwa ryj]

If Klefbom comes back I'm expecting a serviceable top 6 defenseman and a guy who will be good for about 40 games a year.

Expecting anything else is setting one's self up for disappointment.

 

[Bring Back Bucky]

Really hope he's able to come back for us and play at a top 4 level. We forget about Oscar because of Nurse's growth this season, but the truth is a defence anchored by a current level Nurse and a healthy Klefbom along with all of the other up and coming D in the system has the potential to be a very very good defence.

I was thinking this the other day - imagine a healthy Klef this season - the quality minutes he could be eating right now, allowing everyone else to slide down a slot in terms of responsibility. Our pp would certainly be up to last year’s level.

 

[brentashton]

When I was about 23 I was walking around a shop where I was the mechanic, and slipped in some drilling mud someone spilt on the ground. Had a new pair of jeans on so I tried to catch myself and jarred my elbow. Well it was sore, but harvest was going so just had to ignore it. Worst was to shift a gearshift in a truck down. Almost piss yourself everytime you would pull it downwards. If yu kept your elbow in towards your body it hardly hurt though.

Well went to see a doctor after harvest and he stood about three feet away looked at me and diagnosed it as arthritis. I told him I fell but the old prick couldn't be told anything. Two years I was taking naproxen and some other arthritis drug that just dulled the pain. Had to mechanic in the winter using my left had as pulling a wrench hurt like hell. Couldn't hold my kids for more then a couple minutes.

Went in for a sinus infection a couple years later and had a locum doctor. She checked it out and jumped when I moved my arm when she felt my shoulder, She said something is broken in there! So had an arthrogram done and sure enough extensively torn Labrum. About three months later went in for an operation. They had to repair a partially torn rotator cuff, extensively torn labrum and a partially torn bicep muscle. The doctor post surgery told me I had bad arthritis cause it took so long to diagnose. I gave my first doctor a royal ass chewing when I saw next time!

Well about five days after surgery had a neighbor leave some bales out in the field and Dad told me to move them. Five days is enough healing after surgery I guess. Well screwed it up and was about 2 months healing after that, went to work in the oilfield and arm was good. It remained good until a couple years ago. Absolutely no pain whatsoever. Strong as it ever was. Arm never had an ache until I hit 45, then where your clavicle attaches to the shoulder became arthritic. Then a couple years later tore the crap out of it again.

Point of my long winded story is I got 20 good years out of the shoulder before I had any trouble. That was with no physiotherapy, doctors or any kind of help just hard work. I am pretty sure Klef can do better then I did.

Nice story and I’m happy for your quality of life, but we’re you playing a professional sport highly dependent on a fully functional shoulder? I have a torn rotator cuff, limits so much of what I do. I’ve Lived with it for 10years, I am now 57, but I ain’t pitching in The show. Sadly regular life and pro sports are different.

 

[Skar]

When I was about 23 I was walking around a shop where I was the mechanic, and slipped in some drilling mud someone spilt on the ground. Had a new pair of jeans on so I tried to catch myself and jarred my elbow. Well it was sore, but harvest was going so just had to ignore it. Worst was to shift a gearshift in a truck down. Almost piss yourself everytime you would pull it downwards. If yu kept your elbow in towards your body it hardly hurt though.

Well went to see a doctor after harvest and he stood about three feet away looked at me and diagnosed it as arthritis. I told him I fell but the old prick couldn't be told anything. Two years I was taking naproxen and some other arthritis drug that just dulled the pain. Had to mechanic in the winter using my left had as pulling a wrench hurt like hell. Couldn't hold my kids for more then a couple minutes.

Went in for a sinus infection a couple years later and had a locum doctor. She checked it out and jumped when I moved my arm when she felt my shoulder, She said something is broken in there! So had an arthrogram done and sure enough extensively torn Labrum. About three months later went in for an operation. They had to repair a partially torn rotator cuff, extensively torn labrum and a partially torn bicep muscle. The doctor post surgery told me I had bad arthritis cause it took so long to diagnose. I gave my first doctor a royal ass chewing when I saw next time!

Well about five days after surgery had a neighbor leave some bales out in the field and Dad told me to move them. Five days is enough healing after surgery I guess. Well screwed it up and was about 2 months healing after that, went to work in the oilfield and arm was good. It remained good until a couple years ago. Absolutely no pain whatsoever. Strong as it ever was. Arm never had an ache until I hit 45, then where your clavicle attaches to the shoulder became arthritic. Then a couple years later tore the crap out of it again.

Point of my long winded story is I got 20 good years out of the shoulder before I had any trouble. That was with no physiotherapy, doctors or any kind of help just hard work. I am pretty sure Klef can do better then I did.

I don't think I've ever read anything as Albertan as this post right here

 

[jukon]

I never expected we wouldn't have to protect him in the expansion draft. That rule is basically just for unofficially retired players IMO.

 

[McFlyingV]

When I was about 23 I was walking around a shop where I was the mechanic, and slipped in some drilling mud someone spilt on the ground. Had a new pair of jeans on so I tried to catch myself and jarred my elbow. Well it was sore, but harvest was going so just had to ignore it. Worst was to shift a gearshift in a truck down. Almost piss yourself everytime you would pull it downwards. If yu kept your elbow in towards your body it hardly hurt though.

Well went to see a doctor after harvest and he stood about three feet away looked at me and diagnosed it as arthritis. I told him I fell but the old prick couldn't be told anything. Two years I was taking naproxen and some other arthritis drug that just dulled the pain. Had to mechanic in the winter using my left had as pulling a wrench hurt like hell. Couldn't hold my kids for more then a couple minutes.

Went in for a sinus infection a couple years later and had a locum doctor. She checked it out and jumped when I moved my arm when she felt my shoulder, She said something is broken in there! So had an arthrogram done and sure enough extensively torn Labrum. About three months later went in for an operation. They had to repair a partially torn rotator cuff, extensively torn labrum and a partially torn bicep muscle. The doctor post surgery told me I had bad arthritis cause it took so long to diagnose. I gave my first doctor a royal ass chewing when I saw next time!

Well about five days after surgery had a neighbor leave some bales out in the field and Dad told me to move them. Five days is enough healing after surgery I guess. Well screwed it up and was about 2 months healing after that, went to work in the oilfield and arm was good. It remained good until a couple years ago. Absolutely no pain whatsoever. Strong as it ever was. Arm never had an ache until I hit 45, then where your clavicle attaches to the shoulder became arthritic. Then a couple years later tore the crap out of it again.

Point of my long winded story is I got 20 good years out of the shoulder before I had any trouble. That was with no physiotherapy, doctors or any kind of help just hard work. I am pretty sure Klef can do better then I did.

I would highly recommend for anyone reading this to visit a physiotherapist instead of just seeing a GP after any kind of musculoskeletal injury. Unless you have a really good GP who is on top of x-rays/referrals for other imaging/specialists, you are doing yourself a disservice only visiting them. The majority of them have very little knowledge on diagnosis for musculoskeletal injuries, and if they're not referring you to a physiotherapist or getting you further investigation then you may very well have poor outcomes.

Fun fact as some people don't know this, but you are not required to see a physician before seeing a physiotherapist as physiotherapists are primary care providers. However, some healthcare benefit plans do require Dr referral to cover physiotherapy sessions. Seeing a doctor first is fine, but if all they're doing is giving you a prescription for cyclobenzaprine, naproxen, or diclofenac and sending you on your way then find yourself a new GP.

 

[McDrai]

I would highly recommend for anyone reading this to visit a physiotherapist instead of just seeing a GP after any kind of musculoskeletal injury. Unless you have a really good GP who is on top of x-rays/referrals for other imaging/specialists, you are doing yourself a disservice only visiting them. The majority of them have very little knowledge on diagnosis for musculoskeletal injuries, and if they're not referring you to a physiotherapist or getting you further investigation then you may very well have poor outcomes.

Fun fact as some people don't know this, but you are not required to see a physician before seeing a physiotherapist as physiotherapists are primary care providers. However, some healthcare benefit plans do require Dr referral to cover physiotherapy sessions. Seeing a doctor first is fine, but if all they're doing is giving you a prescription for cyclobenzaprine, naproxen, or diclofenac and sending you on your way then find yourself a new GP.

Agreed 100%. Was diagnosed with Costochondritis by a physician about a year ago. They gave me naproxen and other pain meds but it doesn't fix the actual problem. I wasted a few months going back to the doctor and getting prescription refills instead of just going to a physiotherapist and working out the issue. If I had to do it over again I would have just gone to physio right away. Doctors are just walking prescription pads based on my experiences. Pain meds can also destroy your gut, as evidenced by Kesler and other athletes

 

[McFlyingV]

Agreed 100%. Was diagnosed with Costochondritis by a physician about a year ago. They gave me naproxen and other pain meds but it doesn't fix the actual problem. I wasted a few months going back to the doctor and getting prescription refills instead of just going to a physiotherapist and working out the issue. If I had to do it over again I would have just gone to physio right away. Doctors are just walking prescription pads based on my experiences. Pain meds can also destroy your gut, as evidenced by Kesler and other athletes

Definitely don't want to be on NSAIDs longterm if you don't need to be due to the organ damage it can cause. Glad to hear you got on the right path to management/recovery though. I wouldn't be too hard on GPs as they do have a tough job of covering a very broad field of conditions/symptoms that come in. The ones who are willing to admit their lack of knowledge on musculoskeletal conditions and who refer off to physiotherapy/specialists are the type you want to be seeing. Unfortunately there are poor practitioners in all healthcare fields. Identifying when you aren't getting proper care and asking questions can help to make sure you don't find yourself in these situations.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

I'm confident enough in Bouchard and his future that I'd be fine letting Barrie walk if Klef is able to get back. Barrie's starting to show some defensive gaffes with increasing frequency that make me less willing to give him term or money, imo it could be better spent on a goalie/forward. With Bear starting to settle back in, and if Larsson can be retained at a fair price 3.5-4M range I'll be happy with out D going forward.

Next season:
Nurse-Bear/Larsson
Klef-Bear/Larsson
Lagesson (assuming unclaimed in exp)-Bouchard
Russell

Long-term(3-4 years):
Nurse-Bouchard
Klefbom-Broberg
Samorukov/Lagesson-Bear/Larsson

This is more or less my thoughts on it.

Barrie's been a wonderful add for this season, but I have little interest watching his defensive game when he's in his 30's... Especially when you have Bouch who has a similar skillset, and should have been learning everything he could from Tyson this season.

If you let Barrie walk, re-signing Larsson is a no-brainer (assuming it's at a reasonable price and term). Imo he's the perfect partner for Lagesson, Samorukov, and Broberg as they break into the league. Plus the Oil don't really have an immediate RH replacement for him in their system (unlike Barrie and Bouchard).

I think Bouchard is the long term partner for Nurse (seeing how comfortable his game looks paired with a true OFD in Barrie). That leaves Bear to anchor a minute eating, all situations 2nd pair with Klefbom (and eventually Samorukov); and Larson on the 3rd pairing, taking on the main PK roles and babysitting the up and comers.

 

[McFlyingV]

This is more or less my thoughts on it.

Barrie's been a wonderful add for this season, but I have little interest watching his defensive game when he's in his 30's... Especially when you have Bouch who has a similar skillset, and should have been learning everything he could from Tyson this season.

If you let Barrie walk, re-signing Larsson is a no-brainer (assuming it's at a reasonable price and term). Imo he's the perfect partner for Lagesson, Samorukov, and Broberg as they break into the league. Plus the Oil don't really have an immediate RH replacement for him in their system (unlike Barrie and Bouchard).

I think Bouchard is the long term partner for Nurse (seeing how comfortable his game looks paired with a true OFD in Barrie). That leaves Bear to anchor a minute eating, all situations 2nd pair with Klefbom (and eventually Samorukov); and Larson on the 3rd pairing, taking on the main PK roles and babysitting the up and comers.

Yeah its kind of exciting looking at what the D core could look like very soon if Klef can return. I do agree re-signing Larsson at a similar cap hit makes a lot of sense as he brings elements we definitely need and we don't have an immediate replacement in the top 4. I understand them not rushing Bouchard into the lineup this year as he does bring a similar skillset to Barrie and you can only have so many D in the line up who aren't the strongest defensively. I still think he should be getting some reps on the bottom pair, but I think long-term he makes Barrie redundant the more I think about it, especially if Klefbom can return.

 

[fuswald]

I would leave him unprotected even if the surgery is a success. Leave Seattle guessing that maybe we know something.

 

[Nunymare]

 

[GrinningBuddha]

I would leave him unprotected even if the surgery is a success. Leave Seattle guessing that maybe we know something.

If Ken Holland wants to play some high-stakes poker, he will leave him unprotected. As Seattle's GM you're forced to choose whether he's playing his hand face up and Klef isn't coming back or whether he's bluffing and is gaining an extra protection slot. Oh, and your job is on the line if you take Klef and he never plays a game for you.

 

[BigFuzzyDice]

If Ken Holland wants to play some high-stakes poker, he will leave him unprotected. As Seattle's GM you're forced to choose whether he's playing his hand face up and Klef isn't coming back or whether he's bluffing and is gaining an extra protection slot. Oh, and your job is on the line if you take Klef and he never plays a game for you.

After yesterday's media availability you 100% leave him unprotected. Klef said all the right things to keep the question marks floating around his future that make him a risky acquisition for Seattle. I honestly think they delayed the surgery a bit just to have his outcome slightly ambiguous as expansion approaches. Edmonton will know the score going into t.c. for sure. But klef did a good job of making himself a less attractive target if left unprotected with that presser .

 

[SupremeTeam16]

It’s so hard to opine about this without having the intimate knowledge of the situation that Holland would have m. That being said I’m starting to lean in the leave him unprotected category.