Eight years later, Mattias Janmark looks back at his mysterious knee injury

With time comes proper reflection and context. So I caught up with Janmark about how his body has recovered and aged after dealing with osteochondritis dissecans.

Photo Courtesy of Dallas Stars.

Heading into Game 5, Mattias Janmark has been one of the popular storylines in the Stanley Cup Final.

In an 8-1 Edmonton Oilers blowout in Game 4, eerily similar to Game 4 of the NBA Finals, Janmark provided an early impact with a goal and an assist in the first period.

As things naturally go when a depth player breaks out offensively, all of the other stories came out of the woodwork about how Janmark, apparently known as “The Janitor” helped save the Oilers season and mentality multiple times this season.

The other story, the one I’ve been wondering about Janmark, relates more something I covered closely during my time on the full-time Dallas Stars beat.

You may remember that Janmark missed the entire 2016-17 season after dealing with Osteochondritis dissecans.

It’s a rare ailment where Janmark’s knee essentially died. Blood stopped flowing to the knee, part of the bone just fell out of place, and his range of motion was gone with his knee stuck at a 45-degree angle.

It’s a genetic disorder, one that required a panful surgery, and Janmark at the time was only given an 80 percent chance of playing hockey again. He’s told me, rather honestly, that if it had happened before he had NHL care and attention, his career likely would have been over.