This is a degenerative change in the bones and cartilage of the spine - a sign of wear and tear and thus also of his hockey career. As Herren tells the newspaper, he has been dealing with severe back pain for years but he chose to hide it: "I always wanted to play, even if i almost could not practice due to the pain."
HC Fribourg-Gottéron and Herren dissolved their contract this year. Herren's inconsistent play lost him his place in the lineup. As he now reveals, he also hide his pain from the Dragons: "I was afraid that I would not find another team [to play for]. That uncertainty scared me."
When another intervertebral disc started to bother him, he made the decision to take a hiatus from hockey in order to give his back time to heal. At the moment, he is not able to practice on the ice, he can only do some light weight training. Still, he wants to return to the ice: "Maybe it is a pipe dream but I don't want to leave any stone unturned."
