MSG Network
Hockey players are armed with plenty of equipment designed to protect them from getting injured on the ice, but the same can’t be said for the broadcasters tasked with covering their games—a lesson Sabres analyst Rob Ray learned the hard way on Monday.
Rob Ray was no stranger to punishment during his time in the NHL. He spent 15 seasons in the league (most of which were with the Buffalo Sabres) thanks in no small part to his reputation as an enforcer, as he’d been confined to the penalty box for grand total of 3,207 minutes by the time his career came to an end.
Ray traded one box for another when he pivoted to broadcasting after hanging up his skates, as he currently serves as the man down on the ice for the broadcasting team that covers the franchise he spent the vast majority of his career with.
On Monday, the Sabres hosted the Arizona Coyotes at the KeyBank Center, and with less than six minutes to go in the third period, things took a turn after a puck ricocheted into the area where Ray was standing between the benches and struck him in the middle of the forehead right between his eyes.
To his credit, he didn’t miss a beat, as he provided an update on his condition live on the air while wiping the blood away with a towel.
Rob Ray took a puck to the face. might need some stitches #LetsGoBuffalo #Yotes pic.twitter.com/QZHsoD4VNI
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) December 12, 2023
It didn’t take long for him to get patched up, and he continued doing his job until the final horn blew and his former squad walked away with the 5-2 victory on home ice.
That shouldn’t come as a huge surprise for anyone who is familiar with how the 55-year-old initially made a name for himself, but it’s just more proof hockey players are built differently than the rest of us.