During the game on Thursday night between the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers, a scary incident happened during the end of the game as Florida Panthers superstar Aleksander Barkov took a nasty spill after trying to chase down the Senators' Tim Stutzle as he was going for an empty net goal:
It was frightening to see how hard Barkov hit the boards, and kudos to him for trying to prevent his team from being down any more goals though it's a high-risk, high reward play that you unfortunately see more and more as the NHL has quickened its pace.
Barkov has been nothing but a shining star for the Panthers since being drafted second overall in 2013, registering 266 goals and 446 assists in 739 games while being one of the most consistent forwards over the last decade. Known for being a complete player when it comes to offense, defense, and hockey intelligence, it would be a huge blow to the Panthers if Barkov were to miss any amount of time. Barkov was a massive part of Florida's Stanley Cup-winning run last season, scoring 22 points in 24 games and coming up crucial defensively at points. With a knack for knowing where to be on the ice, the two-time Selke Trophy winner has established himself as deadly in any capacity, quietly becoming one of the league's elite.
Dealing with several injuries in his career, both Barkov and Florida can hope this was just a case of being a bit shaken up as opposed to any lower-body injury as this would add just another tally onto the already weary body of Barkov.
We will let you know the status of Barkov's injury as we learn more information.
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Should the NHL implement something to prevent these injuries like Barkov got? | ||
Yes | 93 | 62.8 % |
No | 55 | 37.2 % |
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