And so continues Mikko Rantanen‘s time in the headlines. After being traded to the Dallas Stars, Rantanen was expected to take his game a notch higher and get back his Colorado form. However, his uneven season has continued with the 28-year-old scoring just 1 goal and notching 3 assists in his last 5 games. To make matters worse, he had an awful-looking crash with the Calgary Flames’ Connor Zary earlier this week, resulting in nasty scenes. As a result, fans took to social media to slam Mikko Rantanen for his actions.

The Stars were up against the Flames in what was shaping up to be an exciting Western Conference battle. During the third period, Rantanen apparently slipped and crashed into Zary, who looked visibly pained sprawled on the ice and holding his knee after the collision. Although Zary avoided a broken leg, it was nasty play from Mikko Rantanen, who isn’t unfamiliar with such antics. A few games back, he was also involved in a collision with Oilers’ goaltender, Stuart Skinner.

But nonetheless, it was a scary moment to see Zary go down like that and get taken out for the remainder of the game. As Zary fell, his knee got caught between the boards and Rantanen, leading to him receiving medical attention right there on the ice. Making matters worse for Flames fans is that the 23-year-old had just recovered from a long term knee injury sustained in January that kept him out for a month.

Although he’s avoided a broken leg, and the injury isn’t as bad as it seemed, it’s still a loss for the Flames, who are in the midst of a playoff push. And while Mikko Rantanen has yet to get his Dallas career on track, such incidents have thrown him into a negative light—there were widespread calls in the hockey community for action to be taken against Rantanen for his violent play. Moreover, the fans also took to social media to vent their frustration in this regard.

Fans slam Mikko Rantanen after horror crash with Connor Zary

After the game, the clip of Mikko Rantanen slipping and crashing into Zary went viral on social media and invited the wrath of the fans. A section of hockey fans demanded that strict action be taken against him for such a violent display. One fan wrote, “Rantanen is a f**king menace that must be dealt with. That looks terrible.” He was absolutely disgusted after watching Zary in a sorry state after suffering a leg injury due to the accident.

Further, a fan took a sarcastic jab at Rantanen as the question of intentional vs. unintentional came up after the crash. The fan said, “This is like the least intentional play I’ve ever seen lmfao,” and was convinced that Rantanen had planned on blocking Zary’s skating path as he fell.

Meanwhile, another Twitter user explained the minute details of the accident while putting the blame on the Dallas star. The comment read, “It’s when you watch the along the board angle where after he falls he rolls himself on his leg. Not saying intentional but definitely careless.” Although the fan felt that it was an accidental slip, Mikko Rantanen was ultimately held responsible for causing Zary a scary injury.

On the other hand, one fan supported Rantanen amid the massive wave of criticism. “I mean hes not really a menace at all… the guy just lost his edge and unfortunately slid into the flames player. Not much you can do but say, unfortunately,” a fan wrote, going against the grain, and putting the blame on the game’s intensity instead of Rantanen.

Lastly, a fan remembered another recent accident involving Rantanen; the aforementioned one with Stuart Skinner. The X user wrote, “He just kneed a goalie in the head the night before,” evidently giving Rantanen no benefit of the doubt.

With the Flames’ playoff hopes riding in the balance, it’s understandable why fans are so scathing in their indictments with tensions running high. As for Mikko Rantanen, although he has had a slow start with the Stars, he could play a crucial role for them in the future as they are well-placed in the Stanley Cup Playoffs race. Can he come back stronger after much criticism from the fans? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.