It appears Marc-Andre Fleury could be dealing with a substantial injury.
The Vegas Golden Knights announced Wednesday that goaltender Oscar Dansk has been recalled from their AHL affiliate Chicago Wolves. Dansk, 24, played in four games for the Golden Knights in October before suffering a lower-body injury against the New York Islanders on Oct. 30. In those four appearances, Dansk logged a .946 save percentage along with a 1.78 goals against average.
Dansk’s call-up isn’t a good sign for Fleury, who left Vegas’ Tuesday night contest against the Vancouver Canucks during the first intermission with an unspecified ailment. While some suggested Fleury was taken out of the game to rest, it’s been confirmed that he is indeed dealing with some sort of injury and will not be available for Vegas’ Thursday night road contest against the San Jose Sharks.
Gallant says Fleury is injured. He will not travel with the team to San Jose tonight, but could possibly join them tomorrow.
— Danny Webster (@DannyWebster21) March 21, 2018
Halfway through the first third of Tuesday night’s game, Fleury took a Brandon Sutter shot to the mask. He did finish out the period, though, stopping all seven of Vancouver’s shots through the game’s first 20 minutes.
Fleury has suffered numerous concussions throughout his 14-year NHL career (including one earlier this season against the Detroit Red Wings), and it isn’t uncommon for goalies to suffer head injuries on plays similar to the one Fleury made Tuesday night. If Fleury is indeed dealing with a concussion, it’s conceivable that the 33-year-old netminder could be out for, at the very least, the remainder of the regular season. There’s no indication that a concussion is what knocked him out of Tuesday night’s game, but that certainly seems like a realistic possibility.
Stay with us as details are made available regarding Fleury’s status.