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BROSSARD, Que. -- Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty suffered a severe concussion and a non-displaced fractured fourth cervical vertebrae in his neck after being hit into a glass partition between the benches by Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara, Canadiens coach Jacques Martin said after practice Wednesday.
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Reading from a prepared statement, Martin said Pacioretty will be out indefinitely and that the organization's primary concern is his recovery.
Martin could not answer any other questions about Pacioretty's condition aside from saying that a non-displaced vertebrae fracture is far better than the alternative.
"The players feel for their teammate," Martin said. "Max is a popular teammate. He is a young player learning the ropes of playing in the National Hockey League and he had some great mentors here."
Aside from the obvious concern for the health of a young man that turned 22 on Nov. 20, the loss of Pacioretty will have major consequences for the Canadiens on the ice.
In his last 20 games, Pacioretty had 11 goals and 6 assists to lead the Canadiens in both goals and points over that span.
"He added another dimension to our team," Martin said. "It wasn't only his speed, but he played a very direct game. He did very good work around the net and in front of the goalie. He was strong on our power play. But it gives an opportunity to someone else in our lineup to seize that chance."
That player appears as though it will be Benoit Pouliot, who took Pacioretty's spot alongside Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta at practice Wednesday.
Gomez recalled the incident from Tuesday night's 4-1 win over Boston where Chara rode Pacioretty's head directly into the padded corner of the glass partition at the Bell Centre and admitted he didn't actually see the hit, but it was still resonating in his mind a day later.
"I just remember the sound it made," Gomez said. "That's the first thing I said to (Gionta), did you hear that? I didn't even see the hit. I heard it. I just remember the sound. It just sounded different."
Martin admitted watching one of his young players lying motionless on the ice for so long was an uncomfortable sight.
"When he's showing no signs of life, it's scary," Martin said. "But what was reassuring was to see the response of our medical staff."
Pacioretty was still in the hospital Wednesday undergoing observation, and Martin said no other details on his condition will be given for the time being. He also went to the trouble to ask the media to respect the privacy of Pacioretty and his family, as both his parents were at the Bell Centre to watch Tuesday night's game and are with him at the hospital.
@Ajwmsaguitarman im a bruins fan and ur a retard. MTL dont dive at all now.
check our bruins mentality . 1- we give hits. 2- we give dirty hits. 3- when we get hit. we cry at the referee. 4- if there is no penality we fight people for no reason.. im about to change for Chicago blackhawks.. boston are really fucking dumb... lucic on miller. chara on pacio marchand on salo.... and more this is really sad. the only reason why we won the cup its because that guy got injured.. and sincerely ur dumb
monktryface 10 hours ago
im a bruins fan.. and he obv saw him
monktryface 10 hours ago
atta boy chara
hockey26izb 19 hours ago
@TheUltimateGamer6349 I am a Montreal CanadiAn fan. And you are a retard.
1nSilence 20 hours ago
@MythzRivendare im a bruins fan and i can 100 percent agree with you,(andy brickley)the anoucer is by far the most annoying anoucer ever he makes you want to stop watching the game,dirty hit also
flipthe8 23 hours ago
Chara урод
Artemozator 1 day ago
The way he pushed him into it clearly shows that it was intent.
DeJunkyBoy 1 day ago
that announce is a fucking retard. There was huge intent.
MythzRivendare 1 day ago
I a montreal canadien fan and i would have took my stick and beat his ass
TheUltimateGamer6349 1 day ago
They're saying "Boston sucks", sounds nothing like that. "Fuck you Chara" is what they're chanting.
sk8peg 1 day ago