Robertson injured his shoulder in December and had surgery on it a month later.
Robertson injured his shoulder in December and had surgery on it a month later.
Nick Robertson has had to be patient when it comes to his NHL career.
Whether it was the many injuries he has sustained that have prevented him from having a long stretch of games in the league or not making the team out of training camp on a roster technicality, the 21-year-old will return to full strength when he joints the Toronto Maple Leafs next month.
"It’s just a fresh start. I’m just excited," Robertson said in a one-on-one interview with Mark Masters of TSN on Friday. "Ready to go."
Robertson sustained a shoulder injury on Dec. 8 when he was hit along the boards by Los Angeles Kings defenseman Matt Roy. Initially, the Leafs and Robertson elected to try rehab. But over a month later, the club announced that the speedy forward would be shut down for the season with shoulder surgery.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViYhW2mND5s[/embed]
Speaking from Fort Liberty, North Carolina, where both he and his brother (Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson) hosted a hockey clinic for military kids, Nick dismissed the latest injury as a "fluke" and said he wouldn't have done anything differently in that play, except for maybe not approaching as early as he did.
Since having the surgery in January, Robertson has kept his focus and mind on preparations for the upcoming season. His hope is that the time away from the ice helped him study the things he needs to do on the ice to ensure longevity at the NHL level.
Obviously, I’m a very fast-paced player. Just picking and choosing little scenarios to slow it down or speed up. Getting off the wall and using my skating ability to use my shot which is really what I want to do," Robertson explained. "I’ve been doing a lot of film work with my coach in the off-season before we really got going and to kind of show what I really wanted to work on. I can’t say everything I wanted to work on here but it’s quite a bit and I’m happy where it’s at."
In July, Robertson's training coach shared a video of Robertson sparring.
Robertson had two goals and three assists in 15 games last season before his recent injury. A broken fibula suffered with the Toronto Marlies during the 2021-22 season limited Robertson to just 10 NHL games in that campaign.
Despite the injury, Robertson was skating on the ice before his Leafs would take the ice for practice during their 2023 playoffs run.
The limited amount of NHL games has led to Robertson sliding down into what is technically his fifth year in the organization while on his initial entry-level contract. The stakes are high for Robertson to realize his full potential in front of a new boss, GM Brad Treliving.
But apart from his contract, he just has to avoid injury. Period.
"It is very important. Every year I’ve had a setback," Roberson said about the upcoming season. "The secret for success for me is just being healthy. Last year I’ve felt healthy was my third year of Junior and after that it was my first year in pro with the Marlies. You can’t really predict the future, you just doing everything you can to be healthy."
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