The Wild announced (via Twitter) that center Eric Staal has been taken to hospital after being tripped up by Blues goaltender Jake Allen in the second period of their Game Five this afternoon. The team did note that he is alert and stable and is going for further observation.
After the hit, Staal went sliding head first into the boards and was down for several minutes before being helped off the ice by team trainers. Chris Miller of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune notes that Staal seemed dazed when speaking with teammates and also required a great deal of assistance to get to their dressing room.
In Staal’s absence, Minnesota shifted Erik Haula into his spot centering wingers Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter. After finishing second in team scoring this season with 65 points, Staal has one assist so far this postseason.
That’s GOTTA hurt!