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Hockey players have a reputation for being incredibly tough individuals with an almost superhuman intolerance for pain that allows them to play through some brutal injuries. Mats Zuccarello wasn’t able to overcome a recent setback that’s sidelined him for a few weeks, but it’s hard to blame him now that his teammate has shared some cringe-inducing details.
There’s no shortage of ways to get injured when you step onto the ice during an NHL game, and that’s especially true when you end up in the path of a hard rubber puck that can reach speeds of more than 100 MPH and has absolutely zero regard for anything or anyone that might get in its way.
Hockey players are equipped with plenty of equipment designed to protect them, but there’s only so much they can do to avoid falling victim to the laws of physics.
Minnesota Wild forward Mats Zuccarello learned that lesson the hard way when his team faced off against the Canadians on November 14th, as he was forced to leave the game midway through the first period after being struck by a puck that was fired at the net by Montreal defenseman Brock Faber.
Mats Zuccarello will miss at least “three-to-four weeks” after undergoing surgery for a lower body injury during Thursday’s game vs. Montreal pic.twitter.com/PTJGS7BvqD
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) November 15, 2024
Zuccarello underwent surgery the following day to address what was only described as a “lower-body injury,” but we have some more insight into the gnarly wound that will keep him out for three to four weeks thanks to Marcus Foligno.
Foligno chatted with 93X on Wednesday and provided some more insight into the nature of the injury, as he revealed the surgery in question was targeted at the ruptured testicle Zuccarello found himself dealing with after the puck hit him straight in the family jewels.
@br_openice Marcus Foligno says it was a close call for Mats Zuccarello when he was hit with a puck “where the sun don’t shine” 😅 #nhl #hockey #funny #interview
Foligno confirmed his teammate was able to avoid the worst-case scenario, saying:
“We thought he was going to lose one nut, but it survived. He’s got them both still, so that’s good.
Poor guy got hit where the sun don’t shine and ruptured his testicle. He’s doing good. The jock has a massive dent in it. It was hilarious. It’s funny now that he’s okay.”
Yikes.