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No suspension coming for hit that injured Calgary Flames' Connor Zary: report

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
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Jan 8 2025, 4:52 pm
No suspension coming for hit that injured Calgary Flames' Connor Zary: report
Sportsnet

Anaheim Ducks defenceman Drew Helleson won’t be receiving any supplemental discipline for his hit on Calgary Flames forward Connor Zary, as first reported by Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.

In the second period of last night’s game between the Ducks and Flames, Zary came bursting into the Ducks zone and tried to cut to the middle. While doing so, he was clipped knee on knee by Helleson, which appeared to result in a devastating injury for the young Flames forward.

Helleson was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct penalty on the play.

Given the result, many Flames fans were calling for a suspension on the hit. Zary wasn’t able to return to the game, and while an update on his status hasn’t been provided, the pain he was in while on the ice made it appear as though it could be a long-term injury.

Losing Zary for any extended period of time would be devastating for the Flames, who, with last night’s overtime win, are tied points-wise with the Vancouver Canucks for the final wild-card position in the Western Conference.

Zary has been a massive contributor to the Flames’ success this season. His 10 goals are third in team scoring, and his 22 points are tied with MacKenzie Weegar for third.

Point totals don’t tell the full story for Zary, either, as his strong defensive play has helped turn him into a very solid two-way forward, one who has seemingly been getting better each and every game. He’s also recently been getting much more comfortable playing down the middle, which has been huge for a Flames team that lacks in the centre position.

For now, Flames fans will have to sit back and hope that the injury sustained to one of the organization’s brightest young talents wasn’t as serious as it looked in real-time.

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