BURLINGTON, Vt.—Before Friday’s 6-4 win at Vermont, the left ankle of senior Kenny Turano was completely intact, fully functional and ready to go. Like every other part of his body, in every practice, and every game, he planned to put it to the test.

That’s the Kenny Turano way. He is, without question, one of the hardest workers on the Harvard hockey team.

“He’s a great guy for the locker room, the kind of kid we need on our team,” said assistant captain and blockmate Tyler Kolarik. “Just a blue-collar kid.”

And so it was no surprise that, three minutes and 45 seconds into the game, Turano skated hard to the right boards in the Harvard zone to battle for possession. The Crimson led, 1-0, after its first goal of the season, and, as usual, Turano was doing everything he could to keep his team ahead.

But then it happened. Turano went one way and his left ankle went the other as he was hit into the boards.

Snap.

“I was on the ice,” Kolarik lamented. “I saw it.”

Now, instead of that left ankle supporting Turano’s famously strong work ethic and gritty play, it is in pieces. The hit broke the ankle in two places. He had to be helped off the ice, and late that night assistant coach Bruce Irving drove him back to Boston for X-rays.

The evaluations confirmed everyone’s fears: He needs surgery. And three months of rehab. That would put his return somewhere in the middle of February.

Depending on how quickly he recovers, Turano may be able to return for the playoffs. But it is also possible that his Harvard career, after a confident finish last season and strong summer of workouts, is over.

“I know injuries are part of the game,” junior Tom Cavanagh admitted, “but you still hate to see this happen.”

Especially now. The injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for Turano. He was ready, by all accounts, to have a breakthrough senior year.

This was a player who had 13 points as a freshman, then watched his production dip as a sophomore (two points in 28 games) and the first half of his junior year (two points before Feb. 1).

In the Dec. 15 trip to Maine last year, Turano dressed and scored a goal. Later in the game, he broke a finger. He didn’t play for another month and a half.

But he came back on a tear. Skating with Dominic Moore ’03 and then-freshman Charlie Johnson, he scored nine points in a 12-game span at the end of the season. At one point, Mazzoleni said Turano had the “quickest release of anyone on the team, along with [Tim] Pettit.”