Update: Bruised neck has Lundqvist day to day, likely out until next Tuesday

Feb 4, 2015
Moment of impact. Lundqvist takes puck to throat (Getty)

Moment of impact. Lundqvist takes puck to throat (Getty)

Henrik Lundqvist is out with what TSN’s Bob McKenzie calls a “neck bruise.” On tonight’s coverage on NBCSN, Mckenzie explained that the doctors are being precautious and that we should be seeing Lundqvist back soon.

READ: Lundqvist OUT after puck to throat

The injury occurred Saturday night during the second period against Carolina. It was literally the perfect storm as Ryan McDonagh’s stick came up and lifted the helmet of Lundqvist, briefly exposing his neck. Brad Malone’s wobbly rising shot literally caught Lundqvist in the throat for that split second it was unprotected.

[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH5T21c4rWM”]

Defending NY ctsy Steiner Sports

Defending NY ctsy Steiner Sports

Lat night, Henrik Lundqvist attended an event hosted by Steiner Sports. Along with Mike Richter, he was interviewed by Linda Cohn for about an hour via live webcast. There were no signs of any lingering effects from the injury as he spoke articulately and quickly to all questions asked.

Lundqvist did recall that at the moment his helmet was lifted he was blinded. Instead of trying to pull it back down, Lundqvist’s instinct was to follow it upwards. In a split second his career was almost ended as he writhed around in pain grasping for air. Fortunately, he would be able to catch his breath and felt he could continue the game.

Tonight, Larry Brooks wrote:

The Post has learned Lundqvist, who completed the match and then played the entirety of Monday’s 6-3 victory over the Panthers before skipping Tuesday’s practice, had been experiencing intermittent headaches in the aftermath of Saturday’s incident.

READ: Forecasting Cam Talbot’s playing time

So, the next step is to just allow this to heal and monitor closely. After Cam Talbot picked up a huge win against Boston, it should give Alain Vigneault more comfortability heading into this weekend’s back to backs versus Nashville and Dallas.

Some speculate that Lundqvist will miss both those games, but you can never count the King out for long.

By Anthony Scultore

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at... More about Anthony Scultore

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