The Seattle Kraken are not off to the greatest start to the 2023-24 NHL season. They have their eyes on making the Stanley Cup Playoffs after doing so last season. However, they are in sixth place in the Pacific Division. And on Wednesday, they lost veteran forward Jordan Eberle after a scary injury in practice.

General manager Ron Francis confirmed that Eberle was rushed to the hospital after having his leg cut by a skate blade. As a result, the Kraken recalled forwards Shane Wright and Ryan Winterton from the AHL. Thankfully, the Kraken general manager believes Eberle avoided a worst-case-scenario outcome.

“They’re doing an MRI to see if it got the tendon, so I don’t know enough yet,” Francis said, via the Seattle Times. “It wasn’t gushing but it was a deep cut, so they’ve taken him to a hospital and they’re doing an MRI. I think we dodged a bullet. But he’s going to be pretty sore tomorrow.”

Skate-related injuries in hockey have been under increased scrutiny in recent weeks. Former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Adam Johnson tragically lost his life after having his neck cut by a skate. Calls for more cut-resistant protection around the neck area have been heard around the hockey world.

Eberle, 33, is a former first-round pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 2008. He played five seasons in Edmonton before being traded to the New York Islanders in 2017. The former Regina Pats star helped the Islanders come within a single game of the Stanley Cup Final in 2020 and 2021. Seattle claimed Eberle from New York in the 2021 Expansion Draft.

Hopefully, Francis is correct in his assessment and Eberle has avoided a major injury. Let's hope the 33-year-old veteran can make a full recovery after such a scary incident.