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COLUMBUS — The Canadiens’ Andrew Shaw never knew he had an attention-deficit disorder as a kid, but wasn’t surprised when he learned he has it.

“The teachers (at school) always told me they thought I was,” Shaw said. “And then three years ago, I went and saw a neurologist, had a bunch of tests that he did and he found out that I have severe ADD. He asked me if I was ever medicated or diagnosed and I said no. And then he asked me if I wanted to be medicated and I said no. My response was: I love my life. I don’t want to change it. And he laughed. He said: ‘That’s good as long as you can cope with it.’ ”

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Photo by Pierre Obendrauf / Montreal Gazette

Shaw said his ADD really kicked in while recovering from knee surgery that was performed last April.

“Me with having ADD and full of energy, not being able to walk for two-and-a-half months was probably one of the toughest things I had to go through,” he said. “My mind was racing. I had a lot of energy to burn, but couldn’t do it. That’s where my wife comes in. She helped me, she helped me get through it. I helped her get through pregnancy, I guess. We were literally the worst couple. She was nine months pregnant, I was on crutches, I couldn’t walk. She was trying to take care of me, I was trying to take care of her. It was a tough summer, but it made our relationship stronger and it made us stronger individually as well, I think.”

Shaw’s wife, Chaunette Boulerice, gave birth to their first child in June.