Pats’ Leier feels lucky to avoid injury
REGINA — Boston Leier had no trouble looking at the bright side after a scary encounter with the blade of an opponent’s skate.
“It’s not a big deal,” the Regina Pats’ forward said, sporting three stitches from a cut to his left jaw. “It’s not on my good side.”
The Saskatoon native can laugh about it now, but he’s well aware the incident could have been much worse.
It occurred late in the second period of Regina’s 4-0 loss to the Red Deer Rebels on Saturday night at the Brandt Centre. Rebels captain Conner Bleackley delivered a big hit along the boards, at which point one of his skates came up and caught Leier in the jaw.
“I put an open palm to my face and my hand was covered in blood so I didn’t know what to do,” he said. “I kind of assumed the worst and came to the bench as fast as I could. It’s not as bad as it looked. I probably overreacted a little bit but I didn’t know because I couldn’t really pinpoint where it was that I got cut. Worst-case scenario, it’s your neck. Some of the guys were a little bit freaked out, but then they saw it was just a little cut so it’s not a big deal.”
After racing to the trainer’s room for repairs, Leier was able to return to the ice in the third period.
In retrospect, he feels very fortunate.
Three members of the Pats missed significant time due to skate cuts last season. Chandler Stephenson and Patrick D’Amico each suffered tendon damage to a foot after being stepped on. Colton Jobke also sustained a deep cut on his hand when he fell to the ice during a fight.
“There are (injuries from) sticks and pucks but definitely a skate is the worst fear,” said Leier, 20. “My leg has been cut by a skate. It seems more common nowadays. I don’t know why. You see film of when ( NHL goalie) Clint Malarchuk got cut (in the throat in 1989). Richard Zednik got cut (in the neck in 2008). It’s a pretty scary situation.”
Given the speed of today’s game and the impact of the collisions, Leier said he’s surprised it doesn’t happen more often.
“When you hit guys against the boards, sometimes their skates (come up),” he said. “(Bleackley) hit me and he slipped off and he fell forward. His skate came back behind him as I was turning around. It happens lots where you’re hitting someone, especially against the boards. The top of the body kind of grips the boards but the bottom half goes up, and the feet either come up in front of them or behind them. They can get pretty high.
“There’s flashes where you’re like, ‘Oh, that was close.’ But you don’t think about it when you’re going to hit anyone. It’s like blocking a shot. You’re never thinking you’re going to get it in the teeth.”
Reminded that chicks dig scars, Leier chuckled as he noted that his memento is “going to be a cool scar. It has two lines like a skate (blade).”
His reaction might be different if the skate had hit him a few centimetres lower, but Leier isn’t about to let those thoughts creep into his head.
“I still won’t really play timid,” the Pats’ leading goal scorer said. “It’s just one of those freak accidents. I’m going to take my chances and expect it not to happen, knock of wood. If you play (timid), it might hold you back. You can’t really have that when you play hockey. You have to go all out. Sometimes you’re going to get a stick to the face or a puck to the face or occasionally I guess get a skate to the face.
“Hopefully it’s just once in my career that this happens.”