by Brett Jamieson

Created on: February 09, 2009

Injuries are probably the greatest fear a coach has, especially when it comes to their star player. it can mean making or missing the playoffs, depending on who is on your roster, and who has fallen to the sword of injury. A few players in the NHL have become enigmas simply because of their propensity to injury. Here is a short list of players that are considered far and wide as players that are "made of glass":

Marian Gaborik (MIN) - one of the quickest and most dangerous players in the NHL is also one of the quickest to hit the Injured Reserve List. In the last five years, Gaborik has had one season where he didn't miss significant time. This year is no different, as he has played six games so far all season, and is set to end his season with surgery. It has played havoc on his bid to cash in on his status as an unrestricted free agent. Not too many teams are willing to invest in a player that they are not sure is going to play.

Steve Sullivan (NAS) - Calling Steve Sullivan injury prone is probably a gross understatement. he has just recently returned from an absence of nearly 150 straight games due to back surgery and hasn't played a full season since 2002. Looking at his history, he is also a poster child for recurring injuries: back, groin, back groin, back groin...and the list continues. Sullivan is a great player, and a great teammate. For his sake, let's hope he is back to stay for a while. However, history has a funny way of repeating itself!

Martin Havlat (CHI) - Again, a game-breaking player that seems to get broken...a lot! Since the lockout season, Havlat's only healthy season has been this one. But let's not hold our breath! he played 18 games for Ottawa in 2005-06, and came storming into the playoffs with seven goals and thirteen points in ten games. Next came the huge contract from Chicago. Since then he has only played in about half the games he is getting paid for. He is a very good investment when he is on the ice. He just isn't there very often!

Rick DiPietro (NYI) - DiPietro signed the longest contract in NHL history a few years ago and is now on the IR long term, while the Islanders try and struggle their way out of a huge hole without their starting backstop. Add these fifty-some games to the long list of shorter-term injuries, and you have a huge contract on its way out the door strapped to a gurney. Most significant was a very (un)timely injury seven games before the Islanders made a very rare appearance in the playoffs in 2007. DiPietro, with the largest and longest contract, and the title of franchise player, watched each and every game of those playoffs from the press box. You have to wonder if the owner of the Islanders would want to rethink this one.

Joni Pitkanen (CAR) - I can attest to this one first hand, as an Oilers fan, that Joni Pitkanen is luck to go more than ten games without an injury arising to give him a well deserved break. With an injury list as long as he has, you would think that he already has ten or more years in the league under his belt. He is now in the middle of his sixth season, and has missed, through the first half, eight games. He seems to have a propensity to various leg injuries, but they seem to rarely repeat. It might be part of the reason he was a disappointment in both Philadelphia and Edmonton, and seems to be garnering mixed reviews in Carolina.

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