New Jersey Devils forward Stephen Gionta is the star in today’s episode of “Hockey Players Are Tougher Than Average Human Beings.”
During the Devils’ NHL Stadium Series game against the New York Rangers at Yankee Stadium, Mats Zuccarello‘s second-period pass deflected off a New Jersey defenseman’s stick and struck Gionta in the face. The Devils forward immediately fell to the ice, clutched the side of his head and slid from the area near the blue line all the way down to the boards.
After being helped off the ice, Gionta received some medical attention on the bench, but he wasn’t there for long, returning to the game without missing a shift. Unfortunately for Gionta’s face and the entire Devils team, though, the Rangers went on to win 7-3.
A more surprising hockey story at this point might be a player who takes a puck to the face and calls it a day.
Check out the painful play in the video below.
