Lars Eller bloodied after brutal open-ice hit from Eric Gryba (Video)

Ottawa Senators defenseman Eric Gryba could be facing a suspension from the NHL after delivering a brutal open-ice shot to Montreal Canadiens forward Lars Eller on Thursday night. Eller had his head down looking to receive a pass when Gryba lowered his shoulder and came barreling into him. Gryba’s shoulder wound up hitting Eller in the head and it appeared he smacked his face off the ice.

As you can see, the hit left Eller with a frightening amount of blood pouring from his face. The team later announced that he had suffered head and facial injuries but was alert and awake in the hospital after being taken off the ice on a stretcher. Gryba was assessed a five-minute penalty and a game misconduct.

While it did appear that Eller made the hit worse by slowing up, there’s no denying Gryba lead with his shoulder to the head. The intent didn’t seem to be as blatant as this awful knee-to-knee hit we saw a couple months ago, but it was plenty to warrant a suspension. Chances are Gryba will be sitting out Game 2 on Friday night.

H/T Puck Daddy