Ville Svensson, a 20-year-old forward for Växjö, was injured by a skate to the face during an SHL match against Örebro on March 7, 2026. He was taken to the hospital by ambulance after being seen carried out of the arena on a stretcher, with blood visible on his chin and below it. The referee called an early period break following the incident, which occurred near the end of the first period with about a minute or 1:37 remaining. The injury happened when Örebro's Patrik Puistola lost his balance and fell to the ice. Svensson initially made his way to the home team's bench for treatment before being transported.
Växjö went on to win the match 3-2 in overtime, with Brogan Rafferty scoring the decisive goal. Örebro is in a relegation battle with three points above the negative qualifiers, while Växjö is already qualified for the quarterfinals. On Sunday, Växjö Lakers reported that Ville Svensson is doing well under the circumstances but will take precautions in the near future. Svensson was on loan to Växjö at the end of the season and recorded one goal and four assists in six games for the club.
In another SHL incident, Oscar Pettersson suffered a nasty hit and landed on his head and neck during a game. MoDo coach Fredrik Andersson stated Oscar Pettersson would not play further in the match.
Internationally, Finnish hockey star Ville Petman was injured in a scary play situation and carried off the ice on a stretcher to the hospital. Petman lost balance, flew into the boards back and neck first, hitting his head hard. Tomas Hyka, who tackled Ville Petman, did not receive a penalty for the incident. Coach Josef Jandac said Ville Petman went to the hospital for examinations and hoped the injury was not serious. Ville Petman was not in the lineup for HC Plzen's next playoff game against Sparta Praha.
Back in the SHL, Mathias Bromé got hooked up with Victor Stjernborg, was left lying on the ice, and was helped off in the first period. Mathias Bromé was able to walk on his own after being helped to the locker room.
I was honestly surprised to see him go down like that. I guess he got caught somehow and hit his head on the ice. Of course, nothing you want to see but he is okay.
In the Norwegian league, Storhamar won the NM final against Frisk Asker 6-2. Michael Haga was tackled hard, hit his head on the ice, and was sent to the hospital for a check-up. Storhamar leads the series 2-1 in games.
In an SHL qualifier, Andro Kaderli had to leave the game after bloody images in a match against HV71. Rögle leads the quarterfinal series against Färjestad 2-3 after a 7-2 win.
In the NHL, 28 seconds of the first period had been played when Montreal's Mike Matheson delivered a hit on Tjernysov. The hit itself was not particularly dirty, but it hit the Russian's head badly and he landed awkwardly. The 20-year-old tried to get up but was noticeably groggy and bleeding in the face. He eventually got help off the ice and was taken to the hospital for a check-up. Tjernysov is back with the team and feeling well, and he is flying with them to Ottawa.
San Jose won the game 4–2. Superstar Macklin Celebrini shone, as usual, and contributed two goals and an assist.
The next SHL round is on Tuesday, with Örebro facing Timrå and Växjö facing Djurgården. Whether there will be any rule changes or safety reviews in response to these multiple injury incidents across different leagues remains an open question, as leagues grapple with a spike in serious injuries. The incidents have sparked discussions among fans and officials about player safety protocols and potential adjustments to game rules to prevent such occurrences in the future.