One of Canada’s top defencemen left the ice after a scary scene on Friday at the world junior championship.
Matthew Schaefer slammed his shoulder into the Latvia net and fell into the boards after he drove to the net and had a shot stopped early in the first period at Canadian Tire Centre. He appeared to be favouring his left arm and immediately went to the locker room.
Hockey Canada ruled him out prior to the second period.
Schaefer, 17, had a goal and an assist in Canada’s 4-0 tournament-opening win over Finland on Thursday.
The second-youngest player on the team, Schaefer is in a projected four-way battle with forwards Porter Martone, James Hagens and Michael Misa to be the top pick at next year’s NHL Draft. Martone (Canada) and Hagens (U.S.) also are playing in the world juniors.
The native of Stoney Creek, Ont. has seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points in 17 games with the OHL’s Erie Otters this season.
The Otters picked Schaefer first overall in the 2023 OHL draft. He missed the first nine games of this season while recovering from mononucleosis.
Canadian defenceman Matthew Schaefer injured vs. Latvia at world juniors
In a heartbreaking turn of events at the IIHF World Junior Championship, Canadian defenceman Matthew Schaefer suffered a serious injury during the game against Latvia.
Schaefer, who has been a key player for Team Canada throughout the tournament, was injured in the second period after a collision with a Latvian player along the boards. He was seen clutching his arm in pain and had to be helped off the ice by medical staff.
The extent of Schaefer’s injury is still unknown, but the team has confirmed that he will not be returning to the game. The loss of Schaefer is a significant blow to Team Canada, as he has been a strong presence on the blue line and a leader on the ice.
Our thoughts are with Matthew Schaefer as he recovers from this injury, and we hope to see him back on the ice soon. In the meantime, Team Canada will have to rally together and continue to push forward in their pursuit of a gold medal at the world juniors.
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