Panthers' Luongo feared nagging hip injury would end career

On the ice, Roberto Luongo is known as one of the greatest goaltenders of this generation. Off the ice, he's known to be one of the NHL's funniest and most charismatic players, as he's seemingly perfected the art of self-deprecating humor.

So when Luongo discussed his offeason battle while recovering from a hip injury, it was almost strange to hear the 38-year-old talk in a more serious manner.

"For a good two- to three-month period it was a battle mentally to just figure out if I could be able to ever come back," Luongo told NHL.com's Kevin Woodley. "I didn't feel like I was getting better and it was constantly bothering me, so it was as much a mental grind as a physical from March until almost June if I could ever fully recover and feel good on the ice."

Luongo had surgery to repair a torn hip labrum in May 2016, but that same hip started giving him problems during the 2016-17 campaign, ending his season prematurely.

However, Luongo made his preseason debut a week ago against the Predators and felt no limitations, stopping all eight shots that came his way.

"If you have in the back of your mind 'If I do this is it going to hurt me?' that is going to affect your game," Luongo said. "The main thing is you don't want to be playing a game and worry about what you can or cannot do and I was able to do that."

This news is certainly music to the ears of all hockey fans, as the league would simply not be the same without him.

- With h/t to Pro Hockey Talk