Gory moment hockey star Keith Yandle is smacked in the face with a puck and then casually pulls out NINE TEETH before going on to finish the game
- Keith Yandle was hit in the mouth with a puck during Saturday night’s game
- Defenseman left the ice in the first, pulling out nine teeth and spitting blood
- After some emergency dental work he returned to play in the third period, and was in action again on Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres
- Yandle holds the longest currently active record for most consecutive games played – 821 – by any NHL player and the fifth all-time record
It’s not easy making history – a point that Florida Panthers’ Keith Yandle proved Saturday after getting hit in the mouth with a puck.
Yandle – who holds the active record for most consecutive games played in the NHL – was struck in the mouth in the first period against the Carolina Hurricanes and left the ice while pulling out nine teeth and spitting blood.
But after some quick dental work he was back in action in the third period, and then played again Sunday for the Panthers against the Buffalo Sabres.
Keith Yandle was playing for the Florida Panthers against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday when he was hit in the mouth by a puck during the first period
Yandle immediately threw down his stick and gloves and skated off the rink, while spitting blood. It was later revealed that he lost nine of his teeth
Despite the injury Yandle returned to play in the third period after some hasty dental work
Saturday’s game, against the Carolina Hurricanes, ended in a 4-2 defeat for the panthers, as did their match against the Sabres with a 5-2 scoreline.
Sunday’s game means Yandle, a 33-year-old defenseman, has played 821 consecutive NHL games, the longest active Iron Man streak by any current player.
He is now just nine games behind Andrew Cogliano, of the Dallas Stars, who played 830 consecutive games until his streak ended on January 13, 2018, when he was hit with a controversial two-game suspension.
Yandle is also fifth in the all-time rankings, with Canadian Doug Jarvis at the top having played 964 consecutive games between 1975 and 1987.
If he can keep his current Iron Man streak going, then Yandle will break Jarvis’s record at some point in the second half of next season.
Yandle’s streak began back in March 2009, when he was just 14 years old and playing for the Phoenix Coyotes.
Yandle (right, file image) was also back in action during Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, which the Panthers lost 5-2
Yandle holds the active record for most consecutive games played in the NHL – 821 – and if he can keep going, will break the all-time record next season
He spent the first nine years of his career with the Coyotes before spending two seasons at the New York Rangers before moving to the Panthers.
The $44million Panthers deal keeps him under contract until the 2022-23 season.
Panthers coach Joel Quenneville told USA Today: ‘What he’s gone through over less than 24 hours and (be) ready to go is pretty remarkable.
‘In today’s day and age, with the pace of the game, he plays significant minutes.
‘He’s not getting younger, still able to be ready at the start at the season, over the rigors of 82 game schedule, a lot of things can change.
‘Whether you have the flu or have this or that, they compound over the season, to be fresh, (he) finds ways to overcome it and persevere, it is very remarkable.’