The Minnesota Wild already lost Brock Faber in the preseason to a scary head injury.
On Monday night, Nico Sturm went to the ice after a similar play.
The Wild were playing at home, and they were on their way to a 4-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights.
This moment, though, brought fear back to the table with the memory of Faber’s injury so fresh in their minds. Faber took a deflected puck to the head during the preseason and sustained a fractured skull.
Sturm will still need time for the full extent of his injury to be determined, but it certainly wasn’t something that any hockey fan wanted to see.
Nico Sturm Injury Update
Sturm was hit through the right ear hole on his helmet during the first period on Monday night.
The puck rolled up on Jared Spurgeon to deflect up onto the right side of Sturm’s head.
Sturm was taken to a local hospital via ambulance, according to The Athletic’s Michael Russo, and wouldn’t be joining the Wild for their flight to Winnipeg for Tuesday’s game against the Jets.
After the game, Wild coach John Hynes didn’t have any updates beyond that. Hynes told reporters, “You instantly go right back to (Faber). I think everyone in the arena felt the same way.”
In The Athletic’s story, comments from goalie Jesper Wallstedt were shared, as well. The goalie said this:
“Very, very scary. Obviously, we’ve seen what it could do. Obviously, we don’t know what the situation is like, if it’s the same or worse or not as bad. Obviously, I wish Nico is doing good and doing well, and it’s not that bad. But very, very scary, and obviously you get flashbacks to the preseason game when that happened to Brock. Hopefully, it’s not like that, but obviously very, very hard to see.”
Brock Faber in Attendance
Faber happened to be at TRIA Rink for the first time on Monday night. He watched the game from the press box.
The veteran was also in the locker room with his teammates after their win.
That’s good news, but it was overshadowed on this night by Sturm sustaining a similar injury.
“All I thought of was Brock, honestly,” forward Michael McCarron told reporters after the game. “Holding his ear, same spot kind of. I felt horrible. Us as a fourth line, we like to get to the net, and pucks are flying by us all the time. It’s kind of a dangerous area to go. That’s why not a lot of people love to go to the net. It’s scary around there, and I’m just praying for the best for him. He seemed to be OK when I saw him after the first. But yeah, it’s scary. It’s your teammate. You love him and hopefully he’s OK.”
Given that the Wild play again on Tuesday, there could be another update coming at some point during a media availability while the team is in Winnipeg.
Wild’s Nico Sturm Injury Update Reminds Teammates of Brock Faber