Ryan Whitney criticises 'nothing burger' NHL preseason games after multiple injuries to star players

By ARJUN B

Modified Oct 02, 2024 11:30 GMT

The NHL preseason is underway, but a string of injuries to star players in recent exhibition games has raised concerns. On the Spittin' Chiclets podcast, former NHL player turned analyst Ryan Whitney heavily criticized what was happening in preseason contests.

“Now, with the training and how ready guys are, if I own a team, I'm picking five star players and you're not playing pre-season,” Whitney declared.

He specifically cited injuries to players like the Senators' Thomas Chabot, Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk, the Rangers' Artemi Panarin, the Kings' Drew Doughty, the Blue Jackets' Patrik Laine, and the Canadiens' David Reinbacher.

Doughty will miss most of the season with a broken ankle suffered in a preseason game against Vegas. Laine will be out 2-3 months with a knee sprain from a preseason contest against Toronto. Reinbacher is expected to miss 5-6 months after preseason knee surgery.

While acknowledging the importance of preseason for installing systems and developing chemistry, Whitney asserted he would forbid key players from participating as an owner.

"I understand that you need to work on power play and it's the systems and just the reps, I'm willing to have guys that I need to get injured in nothing burger games... I'm not willing to deal with that."

In Ryan Whitney's view, the risk of losing star players in preseason play far outweighs any benefits. He would rather have his team figure things out during actual games than jeopardize the season.

Fans react to Ryan Whitney's opinion after multiple injuries to star players

Fans have reacted online to hockey analyst Ryan Whitney's opinion on the recent injuries to star NHL players before the regular games.

Many fans disagreed with Ryan Whitney's view, arguing that players need real game action to build chemistry and momentum heading into the postseason.

One fan tweeted:

"Most of the stars only play limited minutes in about half the games...gotta build a little in-game chemistry before the big show starts."

Another responded:

"What if they got hurt the same in game 1???"

"Kind of sounds like you agree with the owners blocking players from going to the Olympics…" a user wrote.

However, some fans sided with Ryan Whitney. One fan said:

"Nope. I agree with you." on X.

"8 pre-season games is too many" another fan noted.

"Cut preseason games down. Or allow less GP experience rosters to be iced. It’s archaic rules that make guys play preseason" a user commented.

The debate underscores the challenges in balancing player safety as the regular season approaches.