A hockey stick to the mouth sent one of Canberra Brave defenseman Channing Bresciani's teeth flying but he wasn't in a hurry to go find it.
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"It was actually already fake". Yep, he is only 25 but Bresciani has been around long enough to know just how this game goes.
The Brave are gearing up to face the Newcastle Northstars in a top of the table clash at the Phillip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre on Saturday.
The Brave are nine points clear of the second-placed Northstars in the Australian Ice Hockey League standings, but they might be boasting a few less teeth.
Bresciani, Jordie Gavin and Ainars Podzins have all lost teeth this season, but that just makes them fit the stereotypical mould of a hockey player.
Bresciani wasn't even worried about trying to find his tooth after he was high-sticked from behind by a Melbourne Mustangs player three weeks ago.
"He knocked my one tooth out, but it was actually already fake. I broke it in a different hockey incident, so it didn’t really matter if we found that tooth or not," Bresciani said.
"It was actually quite the process [to get it fixed], I had to go to the dentist and then they sent me to the surgeon because they had to remove my tooth, they had to remove the root as well.
"I had to go to a surgeon and make another appointment and go back the next day. They removed the rest of my tooth and then they had to stitch up my gums to make sure it healed properly.
"It was quite the process, now I have a fake tooth in there right now."
The Winnipeg native is playing his first AIHL season after spending the past four Canadian winters suiting up for the University of Manitoba.
It didn't take long for Canberra to feel like home, and Bresciani has quickly bought in to the heated Brave-Northstars rivalry, expecting Saturday's clash to get "pretty heated" like their last bout.
"Canberra is not that much different than Canada. It’s actually hotter in Winnipeg right now than it is in Canberra, which is kind of weird," Bresciani said.
"It’s been awesome. All the guys are great, we always get along pretty well. The first step to a successful team is actually gelling off the ice and it transitions to off the ice.
"All the guys get along great and all the guys are great hockey players, obviously those two things are a pretty dangerous combination for a hockey team."
AIHL
Saturday: Canberra Brave v Newcastle Northstars at Phillip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre, 5.30pm.