Steven Stamkos plays hockey in a manner eerily reminiscent of the emblem emblazoned on the front of his jersey - his combination of elite speed, tremendous skill and gritty strength allow him to strike his opponent much like a bolt of lightning - there and gone in an instant, the lamp lit and his hands in the air before the defender's eyes have a chance to adjust to the blur of energy that just passed before them.
But Stamkos, at only 24 years old, still bears the scars of an injury suffered in Nov. of last season. In an afternoon game against the Boston Bruins, Stamkos lost an edge while back-checking, possibly helped by a nudge from Bruins defenseman Dougie Hamilton, and crashed into his own net, shattering the tibia in his right leg against the goalpost.
A year and 15 games later, Stamkos has returned to form, but wonders daily if the leg will ever feel the way it once did.
"That's kind of the million dollar question, is it ever going to feel the same way as before,'' Stamkos said, according to Erik Erlendsson of The Tampa Tribune. "It may never and I'm hoping one day I'll wake up and it just feels like a regular leg. But I don't know if that's going to happen."
He was playing the best hockey of his career before the injury - he had 14 goals and 23 points in 16 games. He would miss not only 45 games of the NHL season, but also the chance to represent Canada at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi.
Stamkos, who returned for the final 20 games of the regular season and four playoff games last year, has 10 goals thus far this season. He says now that his mind was not where it needed to be at the end of last season.
"Your body has a new norm now, and that's been an adjustment. But mentally, it's been night and day compared to where I ended the season off last year to where I am at this point the season.''
Still, Stamkos works daily to return himself to the form he had captured prior to the injury.
"I've seen that clip a million times, but I haven't paid attention to it in the last couple of months, as soon as the season started, because every time I step on the ice I feel more confident,'' Stamkos said. "And other than the times I get asked, it's not much that I think about it. Mentally, I'm way better off now. And it's easy when you don't have to think about that. You can just go out and play and react, and that's what I've been able to do this year.''
