Michal Handzus fought through a hip injury during a disappointing 2011-12 season with the San Jose Sharks, but he didn’t use that as excuse while sharing his hopes for a return to form with CSNBayArea.com’s Kevin Kurz.
“I know last year wasn’t good for me,” Handzus said on Friday, after skating for the first time this season at Sharks Ice. “I didn’t play well or help the team as much as I wanted to, or as much as the team wanted me to. I just put it behind me. It’s a new year, and I [will] try to prove to my teammates, management and fans that I can help the team. That’s my goal.”
Scoring wise, Handzus’ 24-point output wasn’t that far behind the 30 he scored in 2010-11, but his overall play wasn’t there. One could see an example in his diminished time on ice; the big Slovakian forward saw his minutes slide by almost three from 17:21 in 10-11 to 14:27 per game last season.
Kurz asked if some nice work overseas during the lockout shows that he merely needed to rest that troublesome hip, yet Handzus shook off that question.
“I’m not a guy that if something hurts I’m not going to play. I’m going to play through it. The only time I’m not going to play is if the doctors say no, or I can’t go,” Handzus said. “Maybe it would have helped if I took some time off, but I probably would never do that. I would still try to play through it. I’ve proved over my career that I play a lot of games hurt, and I play well. It’s one of those things that I didn’t, and it was disappointing for me.”
He’s one of several Sharks hoping to bounce back in this shortened season.