“Give me a second.”
I breathe through the pain as I gingerly stand up. I blow out a breath, wincing as my whole arm twinges.
“Need help getting over to the bench?”
I shake my head at Noah. “Thanks, man. I got it.”
Moving slower than I normally would, I head toward one of the trainers who is waiting for me and immediately takes me back to the locker room.
Never a good sign.
“Where’s it hurt?” he asks as we head into the visitors’ locker room.
“Shoulder.”
“Okay, let’s get you out of these pads and we’ll get an X-ray to see what’s going on.”
“Okay.”
I try not to let the pain show as he helps me out of my jersey and pads, but fuck, it hurts. There’s already bruising and swelling. Not good.
I lie on the table as he starts the process. Noise reverberates through the locker room.
Fuck. No doubt Dallas got another goal.
It is not our night tonight.
“Alright. Give me a few minutes to review these and then I’ll be back with some ice for you, okay?”
“Sounds good.”
Great. Just what I need. An injury to deal with. Maybe it won’t be as bad as I think. Just a gnarly bruise that will go away with some ice and ibuprofen. Something I can play through.
But the swelling tells me otherwise. I’ve been in the game long enough to know when things are serious.
Considering I haven’t been playing my best this season and now an injury? Fuck. This stings.
“Good news and bad news, Jasper.” The trainer comes back in. “You have a separated shoulder, but it isn’t severe.”
“Thank fuck,” I breathe out. “How long will I be out?”
“Conservative side? I’d say four weeks. At least until the All-Star break.”
Considering I’m not playing in it, that helps.
“What’s the game plan?” I ask, taking the sling from him as he helps me into it.
“Rotate between ice and heat. Ibuprofen to help with the pain and we’ll get you in for some PT to make sure you get back on the ice as soon as it heals.”
“I don’t want to be out any longer than I have to be.”
I can hear the heckles of the fans now.
Jasper Hayes can’t play hockey to save his life.
Getting injured? He doesn’t deserve to be on the team.
This is why I told Quinn I hated hockey in those early conversations. No matter what I do, it’s hard to drown out the voices of the people that are supposed to be your fans. I’ve given everything I have to this game since I was drafted by the Knights and it means nothing.
