Player Very Lucky After Being Struck by a Skate in the Face

Nick Olesen, a Danish player who has spent the last eight years playing pro hockey in Sweden, was involved in a game earlier today where an opponent accidentally got his skate up into his face. The blade actually hit him, but Olesen somehow managed to escape injury. According to AftonBladet.se, he told a commentator between periods that he's very aware of how bad this could have been.

As Olesen's Oskarshamn teammate Viktor Lodin delivers a nice hit on HV71's Victor Sjoholm behind the net, Sjoholm got pinned to the end boards, and his leg went up into the air catching Olesen under the visor and on the edge of his nose. Olesen's head went back, and he went to the ice. However, Olesen got up right away, with not even a scratch to show for it.

Oskarshamn and HV71 are currently playing a relegation series, with the loser dropping to the second tier Swedish hockey league HockeyAllsvenskan, while the winner will remain in the SHL for at least the 2024-25 season. HV71 took the game in overtime, going up 2-1 in the seven game matchup.

While there has always been a risk of getting cut by a skate in hockey, it seems to have become more common over the last few years, as the speed of the game continues to increase. The risk was highlighted in a sad way back in November on 2023 after Adam Johnson passed away due to a skate to his neck while playing in Britain. Matt Petgrave was arrested following the incident. As reported by Markerzone, the last update had the coroner in the case suspending the investigation.Johnson was never drafted into the NHL, but he did play 13 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins between 2018 and 2020, and played many others over three seasons with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Johnson was 29 years old at the time of his death.