Although Dion Phaneuf's injury is expected to keep him out of the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup for a minimum of four weeks, the deep laceration he sustained Tuesday night could have had a more devastating result.
The surgery Phaneuf underwent was exploratory. The cut was so deep, doctors needed to go in to fully determine the extent of the damage caused by the gash on the inside of his left leg, just above the knee.
In surgery, doctors discovered a slight nick in his Medial Collateral Ligament which required a couple of stitches to repair.
Despite the significance of Phaneuf's injury, the Toronto Maple Leafs consider him to be very lucky as a severed MCL, in addition to the deep tissue laceration could have sidelined their captain for an extended period of time.
