Connor McDavid wasn't pleased about missing part of Sunday's overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild.
After the Edmonton Oilers center tripped over a stick and banged his face on the ice, he was pulled from the contest after the designated concussion spotter deemed it necessary to put him through the head injury assessment test.
Related: McDavid goes through concussion protocol after smacking face off ice
"I was pretty shocked, to be honest," he told reporters after the game. "I hit my mouth on the ice. You reach up and grab your mouth when you get hit in the mouth. It's a pretty normal thing. Obviously the spotter thought he knew how I was feeling and pulled me off.
"Sh--ty time of the game too, I guess, where it's little bit a partial five-on-three and going into a power play after late in the second period where if you capitalize it could change the game."
He added that the concussion spotter was simply doing his job looking out for the players' well-being according to league guidelines. The test took about 20 minutes, and McDavid, still clearly frustrated with the night's events, said the it was "a bit of a process and inconvenient."
He was able to return in the third period and was denied a great chance to give his team the lead late in regulation, finishing the game with four shots in 20:38 of ice time.
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