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NHL Referee Leaves Game After Suffering Horrible Eye Injury During Leafs-Panthers Game 7
Photo credit: NHL on TNT
Veteran referee Chris Rooney was forced to leave Game 7 between Panthers and Maple Leafs after suffering a gruesome eye injury at the start of the second period.
Game 7 between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers has been intense, but it took a sudden and unexpected turn after an injury to veteran NHL referee Chris Rooney.
The injury came during a routine sequence when Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola followed through on a clearing attempt and struck Rooney with his stick during a follow-through along the boards.
As per Gino Hard on X:
David Pagnotta provided an update on the situation:
"Ref Chris Rooney got a stick up in the head, has been cut, and has been down for quite some time just getting up now, being attended to by the training staff and heading to the dressing room."
In Rooney's absence, referee Garrett Rank stepped in. Rank also officiated Game 6, where the Leafs shut out the Panthers 2-0 to force the deciding matchup.
However, since Rooney exited the game, the Maple Leafs have fallen behind 3-0 and are now in desperate need of a comeback to keep their playoff hopes alive. Their season is on the line, it's now or never.
| POLL | ||
MAI 18 | 3282 ANSWERS NHL Referee Leaves Game After Suffering Horrible Eye Injury During Leafs-Panthers Game 7 Will the Maple Leafs come back in game 7? | ||
| Yes | 214 | 6.5 % |
| No | 3068 | 93.5 % |
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