Ouch: Leafs' Marner takes puck to the face, returns to game wearing cage
Fans at Scotiabank Arena were in for a bit of a scare about halfway through the first period of Wednesday’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers.
With the puck in the Leafs’ defensive zone, Toronto’s players were scrambling to regain possession. Florida forward Matthew Tkachuk took the opportunity to fire a shot from the point through traffic.
But rather than hitting the net, the puck soared directly into the jaw of Leafs winger Mitch Marner.
The 26-year-old fell to the ice and immediately headed to the dressing room.
Mitch Marner immediately heads to the dressing room after taking a puck up high. pic.twitter.com/m7lqLl7aOK
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) November 29, 2023
While an incident like that would be enough to keep most of us away from the ice for at least one night, hockey players are a different breed.
And Marner proved that when he returned wearing a full cage the following period.
After the game, which ended in a shootout win for the Leafs, head coach Sheldon Keefe provided an update on Marner’s condition.
“Mitch seems fine other than a pretty good gash on his cheek or jawline there,” Keefe explained.
Toronto’s starting goalie, Joseph Woll, who knows a lot about stopping pucks, was also asked about his teammate taking one to the face.
“Thankfully, I have the cage, and hopefully don’t get hit in the face like that,” he said. “It’s awesome to see a guy come back like that and throw the cage on.”
Whether his block was intentional or not, this was not the first time Marner sacrificed his body. He famously blocked two consecutive slapshots from Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak in the final seconds in Game 3 of the rivals’ first-round series back in 2019.
As for the Leafs, with two more points in their back pocket, they are in for another home game when they take on the Seattle Kraken tomorrow night at 7 ET.
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