Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen injured after big hit in 4-3 win over the Golden Knights

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Defenseman Miro Heiskanen was injured in the third period of the Dallas Stars’ 4-3 overtime victory over Vegas on Tuesday night after taking a big hit from Golden Knights captain Mark Stone.

Stone fell toward Heiskanen’s left knee and thigh after getting tripped.

Dallas coach Pete DeBoer, who coached Vegas from 2019-22, said he didn’t have an update on Heiskanen.

Stone was assessed a 2-minute tripping penalty.

“I coached Mark Stone,” DeBoer said. “He’s not a dirty player. He’s not trying to hurt anybody. I know that. That doesn’t mean they can’t call a 5(-minute major) or at least look at it. That was my argument.”

Stone said he wasn’t trying to take out Heiskanen.

“I go to reach to try and angle him out and, not sure who it was, tripped me kind of as I was falling forward,” Stone said. “I really hope he’s all right. But I was just trying to make a play and got tripped into him.”

There was a brief clash between the teams while Heiskanen was sprawled on the ice.

“He’s their best defenseman,” Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. “He goes down and never looks good. He’s a great player. A ton of respect for the way he plays. But the way we saw it, Stoney got tripped and lost his balance. We’re not out there trying to take out good players in the league.”

___

Freelance writer W.G. Ramirez contributed to this report.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL

News from © The Associated Press, . All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Join the Conversation!

Want to share your thoughts, add context, or connect with others in your community?

The Associated Press

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day.