Hampus Lindholm wasn't alone among Bruins who didn't look the same in the playoffs as they did in the regular season, but he was one of the most noticeable.
After putting up a career-high 53 points and an NHL-best plus-49 rating, Lindholm was held without a point in seven playoff games and made a couple costly mistakes, including a puck-over-the-glass penalty in Game 6 and a failed clear that led to a goal against in Game 7.
Lindholm told reporters on breakup day that he was "fine" health-wise, even though he had sat out a couple games to nurse a foot injury down the stretch. As it turns out, that foot wasn't as "fine" as he originally thought.
As a Boston Globe story on Wednesday reveals, Lindholm recently told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet that he had to turn down an invitation to play for Sweden in the IIHF World Championships because additional examination revealed that he actually had a fracture in his foot.
That doesn't completely excuse Lindholm's struggles, but it does help explain why he didn't quite look like himself, especially in terms of his skating and transition game, which is usually so smooth.
Lindholm is believed to have suffered the injury on March 11 when he blocked a shot in a game against the Red Wings. He sat out the next game after that and also rested for one more regular-season game on March 26.
The story does not indicate if Lindholm needs any sort of surgery for the injury.
