Terrible news for Ondrej Kase

Carolina Hurricanes forward Ondrej Kase has been sent back to Raleigh to be evaluated for a possible concussion, according to team reporter Walt Ruff. This is terrible news for the poor forward seeing that he has a long history of concussions, head and brain injuries to consider.

Last season when Kase played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Kase sustained a concussion in March and missed multiple weeks. He managed to return in time for the postseason and earned himself a Masterton Trophy nomination for his perseverance.

It was however not his first concussion. The initial one documented came in an AHL game back in the 2015-16 season. He then missed many games sidelined on the Anaheim Ducks’ injured reserve over two seasons, primarily due to concussion-related absences. He missed close to four months of action after suffering a concussion on a hit from the New Jersey Devils’ Miles Wood in the second game of the 2020-21 regular season when he was a member of the Boston Bruins.

When insiders took a look at his concussion history in July 2021, Kase six documented concussions, not including the injury for which he’s currently being evaluated. And that’s without counting the ones fans, teams and Kase himself did not know about… James Mirtle of The Athletic reported in the past that the number of concussions that Kase had experienced was unknown but “plausibly into the double digits.”

Kase signed with the Hurricanes as a free agent this summer after the Maple Leafs did not tend him a qualifying offer. He inked a one-year, $1.5 million contract in Carolina on the opening day of free agency.

Kase played 11:02 in his first regular season game earlier this week, and now we have no clue when he will be able and allowed to play his next contest.