Ryan Nugent-Hopkins left the Oilers' win over the Canucks last night with an apparent head injury, and Mike Babcock sounds optimistic.
It happened 45 seconds into the second period at Rogers Place. The forward was hit on the side of the head by an attempted shoot-in from teammate Ryan Shea, skated off immediately and never came back in a 4-2 Edmonton win.
Babcock admitted the first thought in the room was the worst one. "Initially, you're worried about a broken jaw and they did an assessment on that," the Oilers coach said after the game.
His read since then is encouraging. "I don't think he is (going to miss much time), actually," Babcock said, adding that he shook Nugent-Hopkins' hand in the hallway and the center "seemed to be doing OK." More assessments are expected today.
Nugent-Hopkins finished with 6:38 of ice time, no points and a -1 rating. Shea logged 21:52 on the other end of a very unlucky sequence.
This season has been stop-and-start for the 33-year-old. He missed the first nine games with a lower-body injury, made his debut in a 6-5 shootout win over the Hurricanes on Oct. 22, and has 11 points in nine games since.
He also set the Oilers' all-time games played record on Tuesday in New Jersey with his 1,038th game, and sits at 1,040 now. The No. 1 pick in 2011 has 815 career points.
Earlier this week, we reported on Mike Babcock's Isaac Howard injury update, so another forward going down is not what Edmonton wanted to hear.
Should the Oilers rush Nugent-Hopkins back?
No. Edmonton is 12-3-3, first in the Pacific Division and a perfect 7-0-1 on the road, so there is zero reason to hurry a player who just took a hit to the head and already lost nine games to another injury this season.
The Oilers host the Rangers on Monday, and Babcock's comments suggest the medical staff will have the final say. A cautious call would cost Edmonton a top-six center for a game or two, which is a price this team can afford.
Today's assessments will tell us whether Nugent-Hopkins is even in the conversation for Monday.
Quick hits
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS: A players-only meeting after a 9-2 loss in Carolina is never a good sign. Spittin' Chiclets reported the Blackhawks closed the door last night. Now we see whether talking turns into results.
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PITTSBURGH PENGUINS: Sidney Crosby passed Marcel Dionne for sixth on the NHL's all-time points list as the Penguins beat the Kings 5-2 last night. Another name falls behind him.
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TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING: Nikita Kucherov answered the noise around his future with an overtime winner in Minnesota on Saturday night. That is his usual way of replying.
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DETROIT RED WINGS: Blanked 4-0 in Colorado last night, the Red Wings are on a three-game losing streak. The offense has to wake up fast in St. Louis.
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DALLAS STARS: The Stars are 9-0-0 when they score three goals or more, and last night's 4-3 win over San Jose kept that run going. Score three and you rarely lose in Dallas.
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Should the Oilers sit Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on Monday against the Rangers, even if he's cleared?
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