Columbus Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko sustained a broken jaw Sunday night when he was hit in the face with a puck during the team’s 5-3 loss at the Dallas Stars, multiple outlets reported Monday.
Marchenko was sitting on the bench when the stray puck struck the left side of his face late in the second period. He left the bench area, holding a towel to his jaw.
Per The Athletic, he was taken to a Dallas-area hospital to have his jaw reset.
It was unclear Monday how much time Marchenko would miss, but it could be at least six weeks.
Marchenko leads the Blue Jackets with 21 goals and also has 34 assists on the season.
The 24-year-old is enjoying a breakout season, already setting career highs in assists, points (55) and ice time (18:48) in just 53 games. His plus-31 rating leads the NHL.
Also Sunday, defenseman Dante Fabbro left the game in the first period with an upper-body injury that is a concussion, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
Winners of three of the past four games, the Blue Jackets conclude a four-game road trip Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres. Entering action on Monday, Columbus sits in the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, just a point ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins.
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