Blackhawks lose D Rozsival to ugly ankle injury
The Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night advanced to the Western Conference Final, 4-3 winners over the host Minnesota Wild to complete a four-game sweep.
But that doesn't mean the 2010 & 2013 Stanley Cup champions escaped the series without suffering any losses. Quite the contrary . . . little more than halfway through the game, veteran Chicago defenseman Michal Rozsival twisted while trying to turn around from a backward skate, his ankle folded underneath him and he went down with a gruesome looking injury. He was ultimately helped off the ice after play was stopped.
After the game, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was brief, but his words and demeanor were telling.
"Tough loss," he told the media, per NHL.com's Brian Hedger. "Doesn't look good."
Here is a Vine of the injury . . . warning to the squeamish.
The 36-year-old Rozsival is averaging more than 18:30 of ice time per game while primarily paired with star blue liner Duncan Keith.
"Whatever happens ... happens," Keith said, per NHL.com. "I've played with different guys the whole year and over the last few years. We're all in good shape, obviously. We've just got to be smart."
The Hawks will also get some rest before the next series. They will face the winner of the Anaheim-Calgary series, a series which the Ducks lead 2-1 with Game 4 on Friday night and which is guaranteed to end no earlier than Sunday.
