The NHL put a cap to one of its best weekends of the season on Sunday, April 28, with the Rangers clinching a place in the second round (albeit Capital’s Tom Wilson wasn’t pleased by it) and the Canucks mounting a comeback for the ages against the Predators.
There were, however, three very scary moments. Three players different players got hit by pucks in the head, including Winnipeg Jets forward Vladislav Namestnikov who had to be taken to the hospital.
Namestnikov was trying to make way for a slapshot by teammate Nate Schmidt in the third period of Game 4 played between the Jets and the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday when the puck struck him in the face.
The official immediately blew the whistle as it was obvious something had gone wrong, with players instantly recognizing the issue and a member of the medical staff rushing to the ice to attend Namestnikov.
No Update on Jet’s Namestnikov’s Status
Jets head coach Rick Bowness confirmed in his postgame press conference on April 28 that Namestnikov left the arena and was at the hospital getting treatment.
“[Namestnikov] is at the hospital being looked at right now,” Bowness told reporters. “That’s all I have until we get a report from what they see, what’s wrong.”
At the time of this writing on Monday, April 29, there is no update on Namestnikov’s availability for Game 5 between the Jets and the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs won Game 4 by a sound 5-1 result with Game 5 scheduled for Tuesday, April 30.
“It’s scary,” Jets’ Mark Scheifele told reporters on April 28 when asked about the injuries suffered by his teammates of late. “You never want to see that much blood, no matter what, no matter who it is. Especially a guy on our squad. That sucks.”
“All you can do is hope and pray that he’s OK. That’s a scary one. Just got to pray for him.”
Earlier last week, in Game 3 played on April 26, the Jets lost defenseman Brenden Dillon to another injury after his hand was stepped on by a skate and gashed open in a rather scary way. The team optimistically listed Dillon as day-to-day, but he missed Game 4 on Sunday.
Roman Josi & Tyler Myers, Also Puck-Hit in the Face
Two other players were inadvertently hit in the face by pucks on Sunday’s matchup between the Nashville Predators and the Vancouver Cancuks, although both of them returned to the game.
Both Josi and Mayers were hit by pucks in the first period of their head-to-head matchup.
A ricocheted puck found Josi’s head, hitting the veteran defenseman and 2020 Norris Trophy winner near his right ear off the face. Josi received treatment on the bench but he had no problem making a comeback to the ice later in the game.
When it comes to Myers, the Canucks defenseman was on the receiving end of a close-range shot by Predators center Tommy Novak at the right circle with Nashville on offense.
The puck hit Myers around the nose zone with barely a minute left in the first period, dropping the Canucks center down to the ice.
The helmet’s shield protected Myers from suffering a damaging face injury. That said, medical staff quickly attended to him and covered his face while carrying the player to the bench for further attention.
Nashville suffered a historical collapse in Game 4. The Predators came back from a 1-0 early deficit, led by 3-1 with just three minutes left in regulation, and ultimately lost to the Canucks 4-3 in overtime. Vancouver leads the first-round series 3-1 with Game 4 scheduled for Tuesday, April 30, at the Canucks’ rink.
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