NHL players are famously difficult to keep off the ice due to injury, a reputation that was upheld by the Jets’ Morgan Barron against the Golden Knights in Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series.
Barron suffered a nasty cut near his eye when he was shoved into the skate of Golden Knights goalie Laurent Brossoit by Chandler Stephenson, causing play to be briefly paused while his blood was scraped off the ice.
Barron went down the tunnel shortly thereafter to receive treatment.
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The live play looks like Barron getting shoved into a “Saw” trap.
75 stitches for Barron. Back in the game. Built different pic.twitter.com/oPraU0MGio
— heatdaddy (@heatdaddy69420) April 19, 2023
It was somewhat shocking, then, to see Barron return to the ice with 75 stitches and finish out the Jets’ 5-1 win over Vegas.
After the game, Barron praised the Jets’ medical team for their needlework.
“They did a great job stitching me up and, obviously, it missed my eye,” he said after the game, per Mike McIntyre. “I was glad it didn’t get me in a real bad spot, but they did a great job fixing me up.”
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Barron also said he was only focused on if the Jets had scored in the pileup when he was asked what ran through his mind.
“Trying to figure out if the puck went in,” Barron said with a chuckle. “Cause it was sitting pretty close.”
Morgan Barron needed 75+ stitches but was too busy wondering if the Jets scored. 😅 pic.twitter.com/L0KgDvFUl2
— JayOnSC (@JayOnSC) April 19, 2023
The Jets didn’t score on this play, but they certainly weren’t kept off the board. Game 2 will be Wednesday, as the Jets try to take two from the Golden Knights in Vegas.
There’s a nonzero chance that, if Barron is listed on the Jets’ injury report at all, it will be called an “upper body injury” in keeping with NHL postseason customs.