Veteran Edmonton Oilers defenceman Andrej Sekera was named the team’s finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy, which is awarded to the player who “best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.”
The 32-year-old missed most of the last two seasons recovering from a torn left ACL he suffered in the 2017 playoffs, and a torn right Achilles tendon which happened during offseason training.
“I felt a little bit of it but I think getting a shot in the ankle was much worse than this,” Sekera said.
He returned to the Oilers lineup in late February and has helped solidify the Oilers’ bottom defence pairing.
“All you can do is just work hard and do all the things that need to be done to get your body right,” Sekera said. “Especially the mental part of the game. Physically you’ll be good because of all the work in the gym and skating and all of that stuff.”
The Professional Hockey Writers Association nominates one player from each NHL team. The winner is announced at the NHL Awards Show in Vegas in June.
Sekera has played in 701 NHL games split between Buffalo, Carolina, Los Angeles and Edmonton.
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