According to an article in the NY Daily News, Marc Staal of the NY Rangers has again been sidelined due to a concussion. This marks the second time in the past two season that Staal has had a concussion and has missed an extensive amount of time as a result. Marc also had a very bad eye injury that took him out for almost half of last season.
This time around Marc should be seeing the ice much sooner than in the past. The NY Rangers reported that Marc is feeling better already and likely will be back soon. The Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault said they are taking the injury one day at a time. They don’t want to rush Marc back until he feels 100%. Staal is one of the teams best defensive players, but hasn’t gotten back to his peak performance after sustaining so many injuries over the past couple of years. The NY Rangers surely need him at his best.
Concussions are a serious thing in the NHL and the league is trying to do what they can to minimize them. Hockey is a very fast pace sport that involves checking. The league has enforced strict rules when players check one another to protect from head injuries. Leading with elbows or aiming for the head is not tolerated. If a player chooses to do this, they could see fines and a suspensions as a result.
No one wants to see players get hurt and miss time. Some of the NHL’s best players have been sidelined and it has affected the game. Sydney Crosby of the Pittsburg Penguins had a concussion that knocked him out of the game for months. As one of the best players, if not the best, the league wasn’t the same during his absence.
