Former Halifax Mooseheads star Brandon Reid is back in Nova Scotia as an assistant coach for Team Canada at the World Sledge Hockey Challenge in Bridgewater.

The opportunity for Reid to work with sledge hockey players has given him a new appreciation for life.

Reid was a lightning-fast skater when he played hockey.

But his playing career was cut short two years ago when he crashed into the boards while playing in the KHL in Russia.

"We were playing a game in Siberia and I ended up doing the splits on my back," said Reid. "My pubic bone went into the boards, I fractured that, pulled both groins, tore both groins, tore both hip labrums. It was a pretty intense injury."

Reid went through a lengthy rehab and was starting to get back into form on the ice when he stepped on a stick in a pickup game and slid into the boards the same way.

Dark days after injury

The injury from that fall ended his playing days.

Reid admits there were a lot of dark days after that.

Team Canada is off to a hot start at the World Sledge Hockey Challenge in Bridgewater, N.S., this week. (The Canadian Press)

Hockey was his livelihood and at the age of 32, he didn't know where to turn.

"Being a hockey player my whole life, having it swept away from me was hard to deal with," said Reid. "I don't know if I was in a depression but it sure felt like it."

Reid played three seasons with the Halifax Mooseheads and was a very popular player. One of the fastest skaters to ever pull on a Mooseheads jersey, Reid racked up a whopping 124 points in just 62 games in the 1999-2000 season.

He also played 12 years as a pro but only appeared in 13 NHL games, all with the Vancouver Canucks.

Reid played several seasons in pro leagues in Europe and was making a name for himself in the lucrative Russian league when he got hurt.

New outlook on life

After a season of coaching in Denmark, Reid got an opportunity last fall to help with Canada's sledge hockey program.

Now an assistant coach with the Canadian sle dge team, he says the players have given him a new outlook on life.

"I saw guys jumping around on one leg with their sled on their head, their sticks under their arms and smiles on their faces. It just brought a whole different perspective to my thought process."

Reid says he's not sure where he'll end up next season but he hopes to continue coaching.

The only thing on his mind right now is Team Canada's gold medal game against the United States on Saturday.