The player will miss the 2024-25 season after undergoing neck surgery. The 32-year-old will be placed on long-term injured reserve before the season begins.
Jesper Fast suffered a neck injury when he was cross-checked from behind during Carolina’s final regular-season game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 16. As a result, Fast was unable to participate in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including the second round, which saw the Rangers upset the Hurricanes in six games.
“Worst-case scenario.” “Just when the fun is about to begin, you’re sitting on the sidelines,” Fast explained on breakup day in May. “You just want to assist your team and be a part of it, so it’s tough to sit on the sidelines. It was undoubtedly one of the most difficult occasions in my career.”
Fast donned a neck brace when speaking with reporters on breakup day, but he remained optimistic about his future at the time.
“You can probably tell it’s a neck injury. Currently, we are determining the duration. He remarked, “We have some new exams coming up, so we’ll know more later.” “Right now we’re hopeful, but we’re waiting for a little more results.”
Fast had 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) in 73 games in season, his fourth with the Hurricanes since signing as a free agency prior to the 2020-21 season. He has one season left with a $2.4 million salary cap cost before becoming an unrestricted free agent.
However, his NHL future is uncertain right now. And it won’t be determined for a while as he recovers and rehabs from surgery.
Fast spent the first seven seasons of his NHL career with the Rangers, earning the moniker “Quickie.” Fast was a competent middle-six forward and outstanding penalty killer for the Rangers. He was hardworking and tenacious.
Though he was never a star, he was an important part of the Rangers’ Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2014, where they lost in five games to the Los Angeles Kings, and won the Presidents’ Trophy in 2014-15 before losing in the Eastern Conference Final to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In 422 games with the Rangers, Fast scored 55 goals and 147 points. Fast’s most prolific season on Broadway was 2017-18, when he scored 33 points (13 goals and 20 assists). Four seasons later, with the Hurricanes, he scored 34 points, an NHL career high.
Fast, a sixth-round pick (No. 157) by the Rangers in the 2010 NHL Draft, has played in 703 regular-season NHL games and 80 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Leave a Reply