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Vancouver Canucks’ Lee Sweatt (left) celebrates his first-ever NHL goal with teammates Alex Burrows and Daniel Sedin. — REUTERS Files                  In about five weeks, Lee Sweatt(notes) is hoping to appear in an NHL uniform again, some seven months after he vanished from the Vancouver Canucks scene.It will be with the Ottawa Senators. Many Canucks fans will remember Sweatt for both his dramatic NHL debut and the way he seemed to suddenly disappear not long after from the team.It was like Sweatt’s Canucks career began and ended in a day. That’s not far off.Flash back to late January when Sweatt’s smile was glowing in the Canucks post-game locker-room. He was seen then gripping the puck he had just snapped by Pekka Rinne(notes). It was his first-ever goal in his first-ever game and the reaction from his teammates was electric.They were chanting “Rudy! Rudy!” as the barrel-chested defenceman coasted into the dressing room after scoring a goal which won the Canucks a game against the Nashville Predators.It was a nod to Sweatt’s resemblance to the lead character in the movie of the same name and to the long odds both overcame to have one of those feel-good moments which are difficult to ever forget                                                                                                                                                              “It was an amazing moment when I scored. It was absolutely incredible,” he said, not long after he signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Ottawa Senators this month.“I was just thinking, ‘Don’t screw up defensively’ and I end up scoring a goal that became the game winner.“Unreal.”So was what happened next.“On my very next shift, Shea Weber(notes) took a slap shot and I blocked it with my foot. I finished the game but I could barely walk,” Sweatt said.“Everyone knows he has basically the hardest shot in the league. What are the chances?”The X-rays showed severe bruising hours later, but no break. It’s possible the foot was too swollen to detect a fracture. Sweatt rested his injured during the all-star break and was well enough to play two more games before the Canucks were set to send him down to the AHL.But the morning before he was to be on a plane headed for Manitoba, he blocked another shot in practice with the Canucks and the foot was shattered. So was his season.“It was so frustrating,” he said. “To not be able to play through the playoffs on that captivating run, when, I think [because of injuries to Vancouver’s defence], I could have got some more opportunities to play.“It just never really healed properly and it was one of the most frustrating things I’ve gone through. All I wanted to do was play again. But that bone took a very, very long time to heal.”In fact, it took until the Canucks final week of the post-season, in mid-June, before Sweatt was even able to skate again.During the preceding four months, he’d fly regularly into Vancouver from his home base in Colorado to check in with the Canucks but the news continued to be negative.Even though the injury marked the end of Sweatt’s career with the Canucks, he has no regrets. He understands why the Canucks didn’t bring him back after signing him as a free agent from Europe. Sweatt was coveted for his ability to be a flex option with the Canucks. At the beginning of the year, he had nine defencemen on one-way contracts essentially ahead of him on the depth chart.The Canucks liked Sweatt in the organization because if there was a series of injuries, he could step into the lineup without having to force one of the younger defencemen, like Chris Tanev(notes), into the NHL.But it’s a year later and Tanev’s development has shown he’s ready for the big leagues.Add the typical host of veterans the Canucks have on their blue line and Sweatt wasn’t likely to get many more chances to play in the NHL in Vancouver.It could be a different story with the rebuilding Ottawa Senators where Sweatt is expected to have better odds to get in some NHL games this year and next.“But I really do appreciate everything Vancouver did for me,” he said.“They gave me the chance to break into the NHL. It was a great opportunity.”That one quick opportunity was enough to get Sweatt the two-year, two-way deal with Ottawa, which gives him a little security. But it wasn’t just his brief appearance in the NHL Sweatt is thankful for when it comes to his time with the Canucks. The 41 games he logged with the Manitoba Moose, the Canucks farm team last year, were also something of a dream come true. He was playing on the same team with this brother Billy Sweatt.“It’s something we will remember forever. His apartment was right above my apartment.”The foot is fine now, Sweatt said. He’s begun intensive workouts to get ready for the Senators’ training camp.“I’ve been skating with my brother and I can’t wait to play again,” Sweatt said.“It’s been such a long time.”jbotchford@theprovince.comTim Thomas official jersey, Terry O'Reilly official jersey, authentic Ray Bourque jersey Black, authentic Ray Bourque jersey White, authentic Tim Thomas jersey Black, Tyler Seguin official jersey, authentic Tim Thomas jersey Green, authentic Tyler Seguin jersey Black, authentic Ray Bourque jersey Yellow, authentic Terry O'Reilly jersey Black