Dangerous. Unnecessary. Dirty. A bad play.
Those were just some of the words that were used to describe Buffalo Sabres’ goalie Aaron Dell’s decision to check Drake Batherson as he skated around the net. The Ottawa Senators’ star, not expecting a hit from a goalie, lost his balance and slammed into the boards, bending his knee unnaturally. The fall looked bad enough before the news broke that he would be out long-term with a high ankle sprain and be forced to miss his first All-Star Game.
Drake Batherson, Ottawa Senators (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Not only is it a worst-case scenario for Batherson, who was excited to be able to take his father Norm to Las Vegas for the weekend, but also the Senators, who will now be without their top-scorer for the foreseeable future. They were given some restitution after Dell was handed a three-game suspension on Jan 26, but it doesn’t address the issue that the team will now have to fill a massive hole on their top line. Along with the…
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