Brett Berard revealed that he tore his labrum in his shoulder during his fourth NHL recreation last season, which lingered all through the the rest of the 2024-25 marketing campaign before forcing him to withdraw from Team USA at the 2025 World Championship.
“That happened [on Nov. 30] against Montreal, right when I got called up,” the 22-year-old said Thursday before collaborating in the Shoulder Check Showcase at Terry Conners Rink in Stamford, Conn. “Just kind of lingered all year, wore a brace all year. It was good to kind of get that situated. It feels good, it feels strong. So just trying to get it all better, but we feel a lot better now.”
No surgical procedure was required, and Berard expects to be 100% prepared to go for coaching camp.
At the time of the damage, Berard had just been called up for the first time since the Rangers drafted him No. 134 general in 2020.
After the damage, the Rhode Island native missed just three video games before returning to the lineup.
Brett Berard performs in the third annual Shoulder Check hockey showcase recreation at Terry Conners Rink on July 24, 2025, in Stamford, CT. Corey Sipkin for New York Post
“It was really just kind of a normal hit, I just went in weird. … It didn’t feel great at all,” said Berard, who appeared in 35 video games last season with the Rangers. “I was out for a week or so. But it’s one of those things where you’re up in the NHL, you work your whole life for it. I felt like I was playing pretty good hockey, too, so you don’t want to really lose that. So, just tried to play through it.”
As first reported by The Post in May, Berard pulled out of the worldwide event at the last minute due to what was described as “physical limitations” at the time.
Berard said he dedicated, skated once or twice and his shoulder didn’t really feel nice.
Brett Berard performs in the third annual Shoulder Check hockey showcase recreation at Terry Conners Rink on July 24, 2025, in Stamford, CT. Corey Sipkin for New York Post
When he realized he’d have no rehab time, Berard made the powerful choice not to take part in the event.
The damage hasn’t affected his offseason coaching.
“It stunk. I was rooting for everybody, it was awesome to see them win gold there,” Berard said of Team USA, which won its first standalone world championship title since 1933. “It makes you a little bit jealous, but I know a ton of those guys, a lot of best friends with them. So it was awesome to watch them. … It was deserved. They had a great team. It was a ton of fun to watch them, but it did stink.”
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