Juraj Slafkovsky reveals shocking detail about hit from Noel Acciari

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Graham Montgomery
November 4, 2024 (10:18 PM)

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Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky revealed today that he was actually knocked out cold by the hit he took on Saturday.

Slafkovsky left Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Penguins after taking a hit from Noel Acciari. The two players were racing for a loose puck when the veteran decided to make a reverse hit on the 2023 1st overall selection. Notably, there was no call on the play. Furthermore, Acciari did not receive any disciplinary action from the Department of Player Safety. He did, however, make a lot of Canadiens players and their fans rather angry.

Slafkovsky did not get a chance to return to the game as he entered concussion protocols with just a few minutes left. Luckily, he was not seriously injured though, and appears to be ready for the next game tomorrow night. That being said, there were some tense moments there and it was actually arguably worse than we thought as Slafkovsky revealed he was knocked out cold by the blow.

"Obviously I put myself in that spot, but you expect to get a reverse hit. They teach me to reverse hit with my back and my ass, not with my arm. So I was maybe expecting a different type of contact from him. ... I got KO'd and had to go take a shower."

Understandably, Slafkovsky himself was rather ticked off by the play. As he said today, he wanted to finish the game and do everything he could to tie the score. That opportunity was unjustly taken away from him.

Most fans around the league thought Acciari's hit was dirty as well. In fact, several former NHL players went so far as to say so on live television. Yet another reason why the NHL's Department of Player Safety is seen as such a joke.