Former Ranger Filip Chytil is in concussion protocol after he took an ugly hit on Saturday night from Blackhawks forward Jason Dickinson.
Canucks head coach ctold reporters on Sunday the bad news about Chytil’s condition and that the center had been “basically” placed in protocol.
“I talked to him today a little bit,” Tocchet said, according to the Province. “He felt OK, nothing great. He’ll go through the every day to see how he feels type of thing. He has had a few [concussions] in the past and we’ll see how this thing turns out.
“Sometimes, they can rapidly turn, so you’ve got to stay positive.”
Chytil had been limited to just 10 games during the 2023-24 season and earlier this year dealt with concussion issues while he was still in New York.
His ability to stay healthy after he was traded had been an area of concern and a scary hit during the Canucks win over the Blackhawks on Saturday night has reignited them.
Chytil tracked a puck along the boards when Dickinson hit him, and his head hit against the glass and he fell to the ice.
He had been slow to get up after the hit and he did not return to the game afterward.
The officials on the ice did not call any penalty on the play, and the NHL has not made mention of any supplementary discipline that could be handed down.
Tocchet said that he had “faith” that the league’s department of player safety would “know what they’re doing.”
He did add that he’s going to continue to try and educate his players about situations when they need to hold up on a hit or not.
“I try to tell our players when you’re about to hit a guy and you see hit name [name plate], you’ve got to abort it, or you’ve got to let up,” Tocchet said.
In 15 games with the Canucks since the trade, Chytil has two goals and four assists.
