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Lukowich To Undergo Surgery, Placed On IR

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 20, 2008

TAMPA - Lightning defenseman Brad Lukowich will undergo surgery to repair a sports hernia Friday in Starnberg, Germany, General Manager Jay Feaster said. Lukowich has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to Feb. 9.

Brad Lukowich

Lukowich will depart for Munich, Germany, today and meet with doctors for testing Thursday. Dr. Ulrike Muschaweck, who has operated on other NHL players with sports hernias, will perform the procedure.

Muschaweck is world renowned for operating on Premier League soccer players, and her minimal repair technique is expected to cut recovery time in half. Lukowich is expected to be out of the lineup for three to four weeks.

''This past summer, our head medical trainer, Tom Mulligan, recommended that we send Nolan Pratt to Germany to have this unique procedure performed because it would dramatically reduce his recovery time,'' Feaster said. ''We agreed and we actually had Tom accompany Pratter. Tom was able to personally witness the operation, meet with the medical staff and become very conversant on the benefits of the procedure.

''Both Tom and Pratter highly recommended we consider utilizing Doctor Muschaweck in the future for players with similar injuries, so when the medical staff determined that surgery was necessary to repair Brad's injury, there was no question about our suggesting we go back to Germany as soon as possible. We are deeply grateful that Doctor Muschaweck quickly rearranged her schedule to accommodate us and look forward to getting Brad back as quickly as possible.''

The decision to proceed with surgical repair was made by the Lightning medical staff and management following an attempt of conservative treatment that did not relieve Lukowich's symptoms.

Lukowich, a veteran of 577 NHL games, has a goal and six assists in 54 games this season. He leads the team in hits with 147 and blocked shots with 101. The Cranbrook, British Columbia, native is in his third season with Tampa Bay and earned a Stanley Cup ring with the club in 2004.

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