Nothing is going right for the Tampa Bay Lightning and their defenceman this season. Two of their defenders were renewing with NHL action tonight, Erik Cernak and Mikhaïl Sergachev. Sergachev hadn't played since Dec. 19, 2023, and the worst thing that could happen happened.
After an altercation with the Blue Shirts' forward Alexis Lafreniere, the Russian blueliner fell awkwardly and in pain. After missing nearly two months' worth of Hockey, Sergachev left the game on a stretcher; here's the sequence:
As he was leaving, the Defenseman did reach out and sent a thumbs up to show the fans that, despite the injury, he seemed all right.
THE REVERSE HIT: A DIRTY PLAY?
There's been some discussion in the past regarding the infamous reverse hits. In a hit where the player in possession of the puck hits the defender, we've seen the Canadiens' defenceman, Mike Matheson, in a similar scenario, awarded a suspension; we could be looking at a similar scenario with the outcome of Lafreniere's hit.