New York Islanders' Brock Nelson leaves with facial cut, returns to score against New Jersey Devils

New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson left the ice late in the second period Thursday night with a bloody face.

But he came back in the third period and scored a power-play goal.

Nelson was skating with the puck along the boards when he was accidentally tripped by New Jersey's Nathan Bastian and fell face-first into Devils defenseman P.K. Subban's knee.

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It appeared that Nelson had been cut above the eye by his own visor. Subban put his arm around the Islanders forward as he left the ice with 45 seconds left in the period.

"My skate got caught somehow and I was going down and just went down into him awkwardly," Nelson told reporters. "I thought it was just kind of a weird collision. It just kind of jarred my neck a bit. 

© Bruce Bennett, Getty Images New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson leaves the ice after being cut during the second period against the New Jersey Devils.

#Isles Brock Nelson gets tripped up and falls into PK Subban.

He's cut pretty good. pic.twitter.com/65VWSw3Bgb

— Here's Your Replay ⬇️ (@HeresYourReplay) January 22, 2021

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"A second later, all of a sudden, I saw the blood coming out. I don't know if it was visor or knee, but yeah, part of the game."

Nelson got stitched up during the intermission and returned for the third period.

The Islanders got a power play at 3:44 when the Devils had too many men on the ice.

🚨 BROCK NELSON 🚨 pic.twitter.com/CPiCpt23Ae

— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) January 22, 2021

Playing on the second power-play unit, Nelson skated into the high slot and tipped a Nick Leddy shot past Devils goalie Scott Wedgewood for a 4-1 lead at 5:16.

That would be the final goal of the game as the Islanders improved to 3-1 this season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New York Islanders' Brock Nelson leaves with facial cut, returns to score against New Jersey Devils