Scary scene in Arizona; Phil Kessel shows tremendous character
The Arizona Coyotes skated to a 5-2 win over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday, but that was not the whole story, as Yotes forward Clayton Keller suffered a horrendous leg injury with a little over 5 minutes remaining in the game.
Keller was in agony after the collision with the boards and the end result was the skilled winger being stretchered off of the ice, derailing what was a breakout season for the 23-year-old.
Here's an alternate angle of the unfortunate spill into the end boards, which shows Keller in an awful "wishbone" situation as he hits the boards with velocity. After seeing this angle, we can only imagine how bad the damage is.
Following the game, Coyotes head coach Andre Tourigny confirmed that the injury that Keller suffered would be of the long-term variety, meaning his season is coming to an end early.
NHL Network correspondent Craig Morgan reported after the game that Phil Kessel did not join his teammates in the locker room following the win. Instead, Kessel went directly to the medical room to see Keller and offer his support. Phil Kessel, ladies and gentlemen. What an absolute beauty.
Keller did provide the fans in attendance and his teammates an encouraging sign as he gave a thumbs up on his way off the ice on the stretcher. He also shared the following message from his personal Twitter account following Wednesday's scary scene.
Keller, a former 7th overall pick (2016), amassed 63 points in 67 games prior having his season ended prematurely. Very unfortunate for the budding young star.
| POLL | ||
MARS 31 | 419 ANSWERS Scary scene in Arizona; Phil Kessel shows tremendous character Would you like to see Phil Kessel back in Toronto on a league minimum deal next season? | ||
| 100% | 168 | 40.1 % |
| I'd take him even above league minimum | 59 | 14.1 % |
| Leaning towards no | 88 | 21 % |
| Absolutely not. Phil is washed | 104 | 24.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
