Defenseman expected to miss four to six weeks Capitals defenseman Mike Green underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair a sports hernia, general manager George McPhee said.
Green, who has played in just 10 of 44 games this season, had two components to his groin problem: A tendon issue, which seems to have healed with rest since the initial injury suffered Nov. 11 in a game at New Jersey, and also a tear in the muscle wall of his lower abdomen. That hole, “basically a sports hernia,” according to McPhee, finally needed to be repaired when Green didn’t show enough improvement. Doctors put a mesh lining into the muscle wall to strengthen it.
Green’s surgery was performed by Dr. Michael Brunt, a St. Louis-based orthopedic surgeon who has worked on former Caps Jamie Heward and Chris Clark. McPhee said doctors tried to avoid surgery, but after Green left a Jan. 7 game against the San Jose Sharks in the second period it became clear the initial strategy wasn’t working.
“Sometimes when you take the conservative approach it takes a while and you don’t really know when the player’s going to be ready,” McPhee said. “With this procedure, we know when the player should be ready.”
Green is expected to miss four to six weeks. He has missed 34 of the team’s last 37 games, 28 of those thanks to the groin issues. Green returned to play in a full game against Calgary on Jan. 3 before leaving the Sharks game early. Green was placed on long-term injured reserve Jan. 12.
“As a teammate, it [stinks]. He’s a fabulous player,” Caps forward Brooks Laich said. “I’ve played with Mike a long time. He’s a good buddy of mine. I miss him out there. Trying to keep his spirits up away from the rink. … But it’s not the same as having him on the ice with us all the time. So do the best for him while he’s going through a tough time and hopefully he’s back for the real meaningful games of the season.”
Green has now played in just 20 of Washington’s 81 games since Feb. 8, 2011. That total also includes last year’s nine postseason contests.
