Chris Tanev injury: What happened to Dallas Stars defenseman?

Chris Tanev blocked a shot by Evander Kane with his right leg midway through the second period of Game 4 of Edmonton Oilers-Dallas Stars clash. Immediately after the impact, Tanev was in distress and left the ice for the Stars bench, where he looked to be in considerable pain.

Tanev left the bench and made his way to the Stars locker room, and did not return for the remainder of Game 4. Dallas Stars announced, Chris Tanev is questionable to return to the game owing to a lower-body injury.

Dallas Stars HC Peter DeBoer was unsure of the exact extent of Chris Tanev's injury status. In a post-game interview, DeBoer said:

".. Blocked a shot, couldn't finish (the game). So, fingers crossed, hopefully he will be good for next game."

In the 16 playoff games in the 2023-24 Stanley Cup Playoffs so far, Tanev has one point from one assist, a +/- of 6 with a 23:25 TOI per game. In his last 5 games (before Game 4), Tanev had seven hits and 24 blocks, per hockey-reference.

The Oilers were very disciplined in Game 4 and restricted the Stars to two powerplays throughout the game, and successfully killed both powerplays. Despite the man advantage on two occassions, the Stars could not capitalize and in turn conceded a short-handed goal.

The Dallas Stars squandered an early 2-0 lead, and lost 5-2 against the Edmonton Oilers in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals. With the series tied at 2-2, both team will battle it out in a "best-of-three" series starting with Game 5 in Dallas on Friday.

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Chris Tanev's absence impacted Dallas Stars' defense

Wyatt Johnston and Esa Lindell scored early goals in the first period and gave the Dallas Stars a 2-0 lead. The Oilers answered back with two goals from Ryan McLeod and Evan Bouchard, to end the first period at 2-2.

Late second period goals from Mattias Janmark and Leon Draisaitl gave the Oilers a comfortable 4-2 lead going into the third. Mattias Ekholm scored the insurance empty-netter goal with less than two minutes left in the game, and secured the Oilers' 5-2 victory in Game 4.

Dallas Stars lost complete control of the game after Chris Tanev's exit from the game midway into the second period. Owing to his forced exit Tanev only logged 8:37 playing time but had a team-leading three blocked shots, to end the game.

Stars captain Jamie Benn spoke about Chris Tanev's and how the team will look to replace him. Per NHL.com's Mike Zeisberger, Benn said:

“He’s one of the ultimate warriors in this league. It’s unbelievable to have him on our side now. I’ve played against him for a long time here. He’s a true professional. He plays the game hard."

Speaking about the hole in the Stars lineup that Chris Tanev's injury may leave, Benn said:

“This gives guys more opportunity to step up and fill that void.”