Chicago Blackhawks winger Brandon Saad briefly left the team’s game against the Los Angeles Kings in the first period Monday night after taking a hit to the head. He skated off to the locker room quickly after the play, but returned to action for the beginning of the second period.
Saad took the big hit while attempting to drive to the net. He failed to get past defenseman Drew Doughty, however, then got crushed by Kyle Clifford in a quick play.
SAMWICH pic.twitter.com/oQr6TFHxh0
— LA Kings (@LAKings) March 31, 2015
It wasn’t a dirty hit or anything, but Saad took a minute to gather himself afterward and quickly was shuttled off the ice, presumably to receive a concussion test. Given that he returned for the second period, we’ll assume the doctors didn’t see anything — Saad didn’t appear to be woozy after the play, it was just startling to see it all happen so quickly.
It goes without saying that a Saad injury would be devastating to the Blackhawks, who are already without Patrick Kane and couldn’t really afford to lose another key scorer. The 22-year-old has been fantastic this season, recording 22 goals and 26 assists entering the game on Monday, and would be a costly absence to say the least. Luckily it appears he avoided anything significant. Early in the second period, the Hawks lead, 3-1, after a pair of quick goals.