Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev was stretchered off the ice at Madison Square Garden during the second period of Tampa Bay’s 3-1 loss to the Rangers on Wednesday night.
The 25-year-old, playing in his first game back after missing out on a place in the last 17 with a lower-body injury, crashed to the ice after absorbing a reverse hit from Alexis Lafreniere near the corner.
Sergachev crouched on the ice, clutching his knee in obvious pain, before being taken off the Garden ice on a stretcher.
“I don’t know,” Lightning coach John Cooper told reporters when asked if he was preparing for Sergachev’s season to end. “Let’s not think like that.”
Lightning players said they tried to recover after the injury, but the loss made it difficult.
“You want to rally behind it, but we are human beings first,” Steven Stamkos said. According to the Tampa Bay Times. “And when you see something like that, like I said, it gives you that uneasy feeling in your stomach. So this puts the game into perspective and we just hope he’s OK. ”
In 33 games played this year, the veteran defenseman has two goals and 17 assists.
Sergachev has played in 475 career games, scoring 48 goals and providing 209 assists.
He has played all but four games of his career with the Lightning.
