Many athletes face setbacks at some point in their careers, often in the form of an injury or a series of injuries. Returning to play requires both a successful physical recovery and mental resilience. Hockey A senior forward Harrison Lucas has dealt with a considerable number of injuries over the course of his high school career. Despite these setbacks, Lucas has remained persistent during his recovery and on the ice to help his team as much as possible after each injury.
Lucas’ senior season began with elbow surgery, the second of his high school career. It was expected that Lucas would still be able to play in the team’s first tournament of the year until his elbow became infected.
“I woke up one day and I couldn’t move it at all — that set me back another week and a half to three weeks,” Lucas said. “Honestly, it was just as much of a mental struggle for me as a physical one.”
A few months after Lucas’ return to the ice, he suffered another injury during a tournament in Munster. In the second period, during a net-front battle, Lucas was struck in the head with the puck; he continued to play after the contact but started to feel the symptoms of the hit before the third period.
“I started to not realize where I was,” Lucas said. “I clung on to the boards, and I got off the ice, and I don’t even remember anything after that.”
Hockey is a physically demanding sport, and taking extended time away can present various challenges when returning to competition.
“Being out for so long, my physical endurance has fallen behind, which is annoying,” Lucas said. “I [feel] like I am just now getting back to where I wanted to be[…] at the beginning of the year.”
While the physical aspect of returning from an injury can be demanding, the mental side of recovery can be the most challenging. Over the past four years, however, this process is something Lucas has learned to manage, increasingly better each time.
“It [has] definitely been a struggle…I’ve honestly handled it better than I thought I would,” Lucas said. “My dad…always says playing scared gets you hurt…I have to be really confident in what I can do.”
When coming back from an injury, athletes tend to place artificial expectations or limitations on themselves. Getting injured can be incredibly scary, but the process of coming back after recovery often presents additional challenges. Returning from an injury often requires athletes to overcome fear so they can rebuild their confidence as they adjust to competing again.
“The first three practices back I looked like I [hadn’t] played hockey for the past five years,” Lucas said. “But I think going out there and being able to allow yourself to do that, allow yourself to fail, allow yourself to look like an idiot and grow from that, I think that is the most important part of coming back from an injury.”
