Zack Kassian reveals a moment with the Oilers that ruined his NHL career

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Joshua Deeds
November 7, 2023 (7:36)

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Zack Kassian was a storied veteran in the NHL who in his 12 year, 661-game career split between four franchises, had his career ended prematurely.

His last season was played in 2022-2023, with the Arizona Coyotes where he played 58 games that season.

Zack Kassian says he was never quite the same after being knocked out cold in a preseason fight in 2021.

"The human brain, something happens like that...it's very tough to go back to being the same player."

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However before he decided to hang up his skates, there was a fight that led to him retiring.

In 2021, the Edmonton Oilers were in a bout with the Vancouver Canucks and he was in a tilt with the Canucks forward Zack MacEwen, who was just trying to fire his team up.

However during the tilt, MacEwen would end up knocking out Kassian and after the bout, Kassian said he never felt the same after the preseason game.

Kassian felt like he wasn't the same player as he was prior to the incident and would end up stepping away in 2022-2023.

After 12 seasons in the NHL on October 26, 2023, he would end up retiring from the sport for good.