“He will head off and down in between the benches for either repairs or a check,” said the commentator after Mikko Rantanen suffered a freak accident on the ice. Rantanen had an incredibly unfortunate stroke of bad luck as the puck hit his face at nearly full speed, flooring the 215 lbs forward. The fans watched with concern as the star forward made his way down the tunnel.

No one knew just how bad the injury was or if Rantanen would continue playing. Thankfully, Rantanen put fans at ease as he skated back on the ice after a short break, this time, sporting a full face shield, aka a bubble.

Yet even the commentators seemed worried when the accident took place. “He’s face-down, a season filled with unfortunate images like this. Oh, no!” added one commentator. Everyone had more than enough reasons to feel concerned. Firstly, it takes a lot to floor a 6’4″ Mikko Rantanen. Secondly, in a bizarre trend, multiple Dallas Stars players have sustained facial injuries.

How many, you ask? Well, Mikko Rantanen made it six. Before the newly acquired forward’s injury, Roope Hintz, Matt Dumba, Matt Duchene, Mavrik Bourque, and Mason Marchment had similar incidents. In fact, things got quite serious for Marchment who required surgery in December last year. Even more bizarre is that the Stars had the Minnesota Wild as their opponents in that game too.

The announcer put it best when he said Dallas has had “awful puck luck,” this season. Thankfully, goaltender Jake Oettinger stepped up to the occasion. The Wilds put 32 shots on goal, and the goalie saved every shot. Yet, things could’ve gotten far worse.

A Mikko Rantanen injury was the last thing Dallas needed

While the Dallas Stars have already secured their playoff berth thanks to their victory over the Wolves, and now the Wilds, its roster is riddled with injuries, with Tyler Seguin, Miro Heiskanen, and Nils Lundkvist on injured reserve.

So it’s not difficult to see why it would’ve been a massive blow if Mikko Rantanen also went out of action. After all, the Finnish hockey star was among the players the Stars acquired in the NHL trade to bolster their ranks ahead of the playoffs. The Finn himself wouldn’t have wanted a fate similar to countryman Miro Heiskanen, who will likely miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs round one.

Coach Pete DeBoer explained that Rantanen’s fellow Finnish star may not be fighting fit until after the first round. Yet, this isn’t even bad news, as the 25-year-old NHL star’s initial projected recovery timeline was three to four months. Unfortunately, the first round itself is going to be a hurdle for the team.

“We’re going to get Colorado, Winnipeg, somebody really good in the first round; that’s a given,” DeBoer said as per NHL.com. While Mikko Rantanen’s new team is ahead of the Avalanche in the standings, two of their losses without Heiskanen came against the Colorado Avalanche and the Winnipeg Jets. So it seems Rantanen’s presence is more crucial than ever before.