Moments after Grand-Pierre went down, one of the linesmen, Thor Nelson, was struck above his right ear when he was late to pick up a clearing attempt. This looked like Knutsen all over again, except there was no visible blood. Nelson was half-carried off the ice by Friesen. According to the league office, Nelson was preparing to officiate another game last night. One can make light of these injuries, as the hockey players often do, but that does not lessen the fright.
Players are bigger, equipment is better and space on the ice is becoming more limited.
The increasing speed of the game is colliding with its physicality, and the tremors are going up the Richter scale. As equipment has improved, the feeling of invincibility has grown. Wesley wears a visor. When he gets back into the lineup, he'll add a football-type face guard to protect his jaw. Knutsen will wear the full shield until his mouth has healed to the point where he feels comfortable donning his old visor.