Sean Couturier, center of the Philadelphia Flyers, was diagnosed with a torn MCL of his right knee after a collision with a teammate in practice on April 17th. He missed game 4 of the playoff series. With game 5 approaching and the Flyers down 3-1 in the series, Couturier played with his injury and even scored the game winner on April 20th. The injury did not seem to affect his play, a testament to his resiliency and adaptiveness. He continued to play in game 6 April 22nd, but Philadelphia lost to Pittsburgh and was knocked out of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
MCL stands for the medial collateral ligament in the knee. This ligament connects the top of the tibia (shinbone) to the bottom of the femur (thigh bone). It runs over the knee along the inside of the leg. This ligament stabilizes the knee joint under valgus stress (attempts to bend the knee outwards). This injury is common in sports and is usually caused by a direct blow to the outside of the knee, which stretches or tears the MCL. The injury results in pain and swelling, and—with severe tears–instability of the knee.
This type of injury can be detected on physical examination. X-rays and MRI’s can be used selectively to rule out fracture and anterior cruciate ligament injury. Most people would not have an MRI for an MCL sprain. Professional athletes may have an MRI to rule out other problems because return to play is safe with mild to moderate MCL sprains.
After the loss and exit of the team from the playoffs, Couturier informed reporters his injury would not benefit from surgery, but that if he were injured mid-season he probably would have stayed out of play for 4 weeks. He accepted the discomfort and some risk for additional damage (for example to the anterior cruciate ligament) if the knee were to be injured again. The MCL injury potentially increases the vulnerability of the knee. It’s important to understand that return to play is always a matter of accepting some risk and discomfort.

This article was made by Alexa Ryder and David Ring