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Hockey is probably the last sport you want to play if you care about having a full set of teeth. NHL veteran Chris Tanev has spit more than a few chiclets over the course of his career, and he could apparently not care less about losing at least one more after risking disaster by blocking a shot with his face.
There are plenty of ways to succumb to the damage on the dental front when you’re a hockey player. The vast majority of guys in the NHL wear a mouthguard, but they don’t offer much protection if you catch a high stick or get drilled with a puck.
Tanev befell that second fate when the Flames faced off against the Golden Knights on Tuesday night, as the Calgary defenseman became the latest person to prove hockey players are a different breed when he sacrificed his face in order to block a shot that was fired at the net by William Karlsson in the third period.
Chris Tanev blocked this shot with his face 🫣 pic.twitter.com/y7IR2FDOxV
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) November 28, 2023
That tribute to the Hockey Gods ensured the score remained tied at one goal apiece, and while Tanev understandably headed to the locker room to get the 12 stitches that were needed to treat the damage, he could take some solace in knowing his team walked away with the 2-1 victory in overtime.
Tanev wasted no time getting back on the ice, as he was in attendance when the Flames hit the rink for practice on Wednesday. According to Eric Francis of SportsNet, he had the perfect answer when he was asked about the incident in question, saying, “I don’t mind if the snaggletooth gets gone” while referencing the pearly white that’s flanked by a sizeable gap stemming from previous mishaps.
I will never stop being surprised by the ability of NHL players to shrug off injuries that make parts of my body hurt just by thinking about them.