Zuccarello Lost Ability to Speak for 4 Days
We all know the risks that we take, and that NHL players take, when stepping on the ice.
But this is unfortunately a real reminder of how scary it can be.
Mats Zuccarello lost the ability to speak for 4 days after taking a slap shot to the left side of his head on April 24th.
He didn’t suffer a concussion but was hospitalized for three days. And speech didn’t return until the fourth.
NY Daily News spoke to Mats:
“Of course, yeah,” Zuccarello said at the Rangers’ breakup day when asked if he was scared. “In the beginning I couldn’t talk. I lost everything. It was scary, but the doctors have been really good and made sure I knew I was gonna be healthy.”
Zuccarello left Game 5 of the first-round series against Pittsburgh with 3:58 left in the first period and never returned. He had recently been skating in a non-contact jersey and there was a glimmer of hope he could’ve returned if the Rangers had advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, but Zuccarello conceded it was unlikely. He did say he should be “ready to go” next season.
And more from his teammates:
When he was told after the game Zuccarello was in the hospital, McDonagh went to go see him.
“It was not a very good sight, for sure,” McDonagh said. “You don’t want to see your teammate in a hospital bed with wires going every which way making sure he’s OK. He said about his speech, you wanted to communicate with him but it was a challenge for him. It was tough to see a very close friend and obviously a big part of our team go down that way and in that fashion. We sorely missed him, for sure, in the playoffs.”
Derick Brassard, one of Zuccarello’s best friends, said he visited his linemate the day after he was injured and said “it wasn’t easy, but at the same time he was taken care of by our doctors. They did a really good job with him. It was just too bad he couldn’t play in the conference final. We just need him to take the summer and make sure he’s 100 percent for next season.”
Image courtesy of Anna Enriquez.
