Peter Forsberg is not only one of the most underrated hockey players of all time. But, unfortunately, he is probably at the top when it comes to being the most injured as well. If it weren’t for all his injuries, especially in his feet, one can only imagine how great his career actually could’ve been.
Few players in NHL history have a better points-per-game average in NHL history than Forsberg, with his 885 points in 708 games. During his years with the Colorado Avalanche, he also won two Stanley Cups and several individual awards.
But he couldn’t get rid of his injuries. In the end, it wasn’t possible to continue. He was in too much pain, and during his last years in the NHL, he hardly played more than half a season.
Peter Forsberg is almost as famous for his injuries as for what he did on the ice, and he had so many surgeries that he even had to schedule them to be able to watch sports on TV while he was recovering.
There’s one surgery Forsberg will never forget.
“There were two bones in my foot that moved, and we had to push something in there. The doctor hammered it in, but thought the thing was too small, so he pulled it out and hit a bigger one with a rubber mallet. Then he stitched me up and said: ‘This is going to hurt real bad, so take these pills tonight,” Forsberg said per NHL.com.
Forsberg went home from the hospital with one simple task; To take the pills to ease the paints. But he failed.
“I forgot the pills at the hospital. It was Friday night, and everyone had gone home. The anesthesia began to wear off at the hotel. Then it started to hur. I remember crawling between the bed and the bathtub. The water was 122 degrees warm and then my body went into shock and I couldn’t feel my foot anymore. It was a pretty tough evening.”
