As the first period of Game 4 between the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals was winding down, John Carlson hit Scott Laughton. Thanks to the speed and angle at which Laughton was going, we were left with a terrifying result: Laughton lying motionless on the ice for an extended period of time, before being stretchered off and taken to hospital.
It was reported that he was conscious, talking, and able to move his limbs on the way out, and he was being kept at the hospital for precautionary reasons.
Well, extremely good news: he’s since been released, and is presently doing well. He will not, however, be playing in Game 5 as the Flyers once again fight to stay alive, as he is not making the trip to D.C. with the rest of his teammates.
However, he will not accompany the team to Washington and we will have an update in the next couple of days.
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) April 21, 2016
This is probably for the best: even if Laughton is okay, that was still a terrifying incident, and enough to shake anyone up for a while. There’s no sense in rushing back into the game; not after something like that.
As Charlie detailed in his ninth observation, the Flyers have other options up front for Game 5. Hopefully they can once again get the job done.
