Detroit's Anthony Mantha hasn't played a game with his team since December 21st. On that night, Mantha went after Toronto's Jake Muzzin after the defenseman laid a big hit on one of his teammates. Muzzin put Mantha in a headlock and pulled him to the ice hard, knocking him out of the game. Since then, all that was said was that Mantha was dealing with an upper-body injury. We now know he suffered a punctured lung on the play.
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“I had a punctured lung,” Mantha told the Detroit Free Press. “That's what took the six weeks to heal. We didn't want to risk that. Then obviously the ribs, it's a matter of time before it heals. And then the head was just preventative."
"With the force of impact, my ribs punctured my lungs,” Mantha said. “It was probably the worst pain I've been in. And on top of all that, I got the flu on Day 2 of being injured, I had 103 fever. So it was just a terrible first week.”
While many Detroit fans were calling on the NHL to discipline Muzzin, he received no fine or suspension on the play. Coach Jeff Blashill told the Free Press he spoke with the league and they didn't think there was anything fine-able or suspend-able involved. You can see the incident below.
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