Commercials and Billboards Celebrate Women’s Ice Hockey Player’s Comeback from Injury
Albertus Magnus College and Griffin Health have teamed up to share an inspiring story of how orthopedic surgery ‘lit the lamp’ for young women’s hockey player. Lila Whitney, a defender on the Falcons Women’s Hockey team, is not only a rising star on the ice — she’s playing a leading role in a local commercial and billboards for orthopedic surgery at Griffin Health.
Whitney, an Albertus sophomore from Canton, Conn., was pushing through the pain of a torn hip labrum since high school and required surgery. After gritting through her freshman season, Lila saw renowned orthopedic surgeon Jeffrey Klauser, who recommended surgery to repair the tear and fix a bone condition that caused the tear. The successful surgery enabled Whitney to skate and score with joy — leading to a solid season where she played in 24 games and notched seven shots.
Whitney’s comeback story is the subject of a statewide commercial and billboards throughout New Haven County that highlight how Dr. Klauser and Griffin Health’s patient-centered care restored her confidence “physically, emotionally, completely.” The commercials also feature Whitney’s teammates, who helped her recover, in a video of a practice.
“I got into the ice, and I was like, ‘oh my God,’ I haven’t skated with no pain in, I don’t know, four or five years,” Whitney said. “It was really nice to finally have someone that listened to me and knew that there was something wrong with my hip and was able to fix it. I’ve been dealing with pain for so long and to then finally step on the ice and be able to skate normally and no pain-free is just amazing. There’s no other way to describe it other than amazing.”
In addition to Whitney working her way back from the injury to join the Falcons this season, she grew as a team contributor – helping Albertus to qualify for the New England Hockey Conference Tournament in its first year in the league.
“Lila’s resilience and determination are truly inspiring,” said Albertus head coach Steve Novodor. “After battling through surgery and rehab, she’s back on the ice stronger than ever. Her dedication to the team and love of the game never wavered, and we’re so proud to have her competing again.”
Dr. Klauser, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with Connecticut Orthopedics, specializes in arthroscopic surgery and the treatment of sports related injuries in patients of all ages. Following the completion of his residency, Dr. Klauser was selected to become a sports medicine fellow under the tutelage of world-renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews. While at the Andrews Institute, Dr. Klauser worked side-by-side with Dr. Andrews where he learned advanced techniques to care for the highest level of professional athletes and young amateur athletes alike. His team physician experience included the Toronto Blue Jays, Tampa Bay Rays, Washington Nationals, Auburn University, Pensacola Blue Wahoos, University of West Florida, and multiple high school sports teams, including the Under Armour All-American Team.
“Hockey players put a lot of stresses through their hip joints and oftentimes can tear their labrum, which is a rim of cartilage that surrounds the socket, acts as like a gasket for the hip,” Klauser said. “Lila had a recurrent tear for her labrum and her hip as well as a lot of scar tissue from the prior surgery. She’s an athlete, and she’s got a long career ahead of her, so part of my job is to figure out, well, what can we do to help her get her back to the ice.
“Hip labrum reconstruction requires precision and teamwork. At Griffin, I’m confident in the caregivers and technology that help Lila fulfill her dream and return to the ice at a high level.”
To learn more about Lila’s story and Griffin’s patient-centered sports medicine, visit https://www.griffinhealth.org/solutions-for-sports-injuries.
About Griffin Health
Griffin Health is a not-for-profit health care system that includes the award-winning Griffin Hospital, an independent community teaching hospital located in Derby, Connecticut and its integrated medical practice Griffin Faculty Physicians. Griffin Hospital is a 160-bed acute care community hospital serving more than 130,000 residents of the Lower Naugatuck Valley Region. Griffin Hospital is the flagship hospital for Planetree, an international consumer healthcare organization dedicated to promoting patient-centered care, and has received national recognition for creating a healthcare facility and an approach to patient care that is responsive to the needs of the whole person and their loved ones. Griffin’s commitment to the patient-centered care philosophy enhances its mission to improve the well-being of its communities by empowering individuals with health education, wellness programs and assistance with social determinants of health. Many healthcare organizations around the world send visitors to Griffin Hospital’s facilities and incorporate its Planetree concepts into their healthcare models. Griffin Hospital is recognized for having industry-leading patient satisfaction ratings and has received numerous quality and clinical excellence awards. Griffin Hospital was listed as one of the “World’s Best Hospitals” by Newsweek magazine for seven consecutive years (2019-2025), awarded Gold Certification for Excellence in Person-Centered Care™ by Planetree International, and was named one of “Becker’s 100 Great Community Hospitals” the highly reputable healthcare specialty publication Becker’s Hospital Review for continued focus on equity, patient satisfaction, innovation, and improving the health needs of the surrounding community. For more information, visit www.griffinhealth.org.
About Albertus Magnus College:
Albertus Magnus College, founded in 1925, is a coeducational Catholic College in the Dominican tradition. Albertus’ values- and liberal arts-based education is recognized by external rankings such as US News & World Report, Money Magazine, and The New York Times, and has been named a Top 10 Military Friendly School. For nine consecutive years, at least 95% of Albertus graduates have attained full-time employment or gone onto graduate studies within six months of completing their degrees. The College has an enrollment of approximately 1,300 students across its traditional undergraduate, accelerated adult undergraduate, and 12 graduate programs. Proud to enroll a student body where more than half of its undergraduate students receive Federal Pell Grants and are first generation college goers, Albertus is known for its innovative curricular offerings, recently launching new Bachelor’s degree programs in Nursing, LPN-to-BSN, General Health Sciences, Interdisciplinary Studies, and Public Health; among its graduate programs is the State of Connecticut’s only Master of Arts in Art Therapy and Counseling program and just one of three schools to offer a Master of Science in Human Services. Less than a year from its historic 100th Anniversary, the College is implementing its Albertus 2025: Lighting the Way to a Second Century strategic plan, which articulates an inspiring, bold vision to “be a destination liberal arts-based college, distinguished in its interdisciplinary and experiential approach to education, rooted in Dominican values, that prepares students for lifelong civic engagement and success.” To learn more, please visit albertus.edu.