Minnesota Wild enforcer Ryan Reaves made his presence known early in Wednesday night’s game against the Detroit Red Wings, delivering a bone-crushing hit to defenseman Filip Hronek in the first period.
The hit occurred just over three minutes into the game when Hronek was carrying the puck out of his own zone. As Hronek skated up ice, he looked behind him, not knowing the 6-foot-1, 225-pound winger was ready to send him to the shadow realm.
oh my good lord ryan reaves pic.twitter.com/2MjgsPW2tz
— Spoked Z (@SpokedZ) December 15, 2022
The hit didn’t look any more comforting from the ice level where Hronek looked like he just got hit by a semi on I-94.
Ryan Reaves hit stick 😳#NHL // #MNWild pic.twitter.com/JiXeeXZKSS
— FanDuel Sports Network North (@FanDuelSN_NOR) December 15, 2022
Reaves’s hit must have worked as the Red Wings were limited to two shots in the first period and none after Hronek was sent to the locker room.
With the Wild wearing their reverse retro jerseys, it will be interesting to see if any old-school North Stars/Red Wings activities will break out during the rest of the game.
