Martin Fehervary had an unlucky night against the Seattle Kraken.
After losing a potential goal to a coach’s challenge early in the game, Fehervary took a puck to the face in the second period, sending him down the tunnel. Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn launched the unlucky slapshot from the blue line — the puck ricocheted off the blade of Tom Wilson’s stick before hitting Fehervary up high.
Officials immediately blew the play dead when a bleeding Fehervary collapsed to the ice. The Slovakian rearguard left the ice under his own power while holding a towel to his nose area, but was able to return in the third period.
Fehervary has had a rough month when it comes to facial injuries, with Thursday’s marking at least his third since the holiday break. He took a friendly-fire high stick from Tom Wilson to the face on December 31 against the Boston Bruins, sending him into concussion protocol and ending his night early. In his very next game, Fehervary chipped his tooth when he took another high stick against the Minnesota Wild before coming back and scoring his first goal of the season.
dawg pic.twitter.com/0jv94TZrU4
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 3, 2025
He also began Thursday’s contest with another cut on his face of unknown origin.
Fehervary and the Capitals thought he’d scored his second goal of the season less than five minutes into Thursday’s game, beating goaltender Joey Daccord with a snapshot, but officials ruled that Nic Dowd had put the play offside after a challenge from the Seattle bench, negating what had been a 1-0 lead.
After going for repairs following Dunn’s slapshot, Fehervary finished the night sporting a cut on his eyebrow and visible swelling, recording a total of 16:25 on ice in the 3-0 win.
“It’s unbelievable,” head coach Spencer Carbery said of Fehervary’s return. “It’s just an example — it’s a microcosm of what our group and what our guys are all about on this team. He lays it on the line, takes a puck up high, and then he still — he has to go get repairs. His eye looks like it’s a mess — and he comes back out, plays, and he’s still blocking more shots. It’s just a complete example of what our group is all about and guys that lay it on and sacrifice for one another and he embodies that. Marty, the kid’s a warrior.”
“He’s going to be sleeping on his back tonight,” Brent Johnson said on the Capitals’ postgame show, adding. “It might scar a little bit, but he’ll do that anytime to get two points.”
