The postgame visual of Hughes\u2019 altered smile with the American flag draped over his shoulders provided an iconic image.<\/p>\n
Jack Hughes\u00a0during Sunday’s medal ceremony in Milan. Credit: Getty Images\/Bruce Bennett<\/p>\n
“In hockey, if you lose your teeth, it\u2019s not even a question of coming back and playing,” Hughes told reporters in Miami on Monday. “That\u2019s like an automatic. I just was feeling around my mouth and I was just disappointed I lost my teeth, but it is what it is now … I\u2019m going to fix these things. I want my good smile back.”<\/p>\n
Leonard Patella, the Islanders\u2019 team dentist for the last five years who also works for Northwell Health, said that by looking at the picture \u2014 which does not detail the full severity \u2014 it appears Hughes suffered a fractured central incisor and possibly a crack pretty low on another tooth. Like Hughes said, it\u2019s not a huge deal for hockey players. And for the team dentists, it\u2019s not an everyday task, either.<\/p>\n
“I think the thing to take home from this, really, is that it’s not common,” Patella told Newsday. “It doesn’t happen all the time, as most people think. And when it does, we take care of it immediately.”<\/p>\n
Patella said that when a player gets hit in the face and there\u2019s a tooth injury, he has to look for a couple things. The first would be any lacerations, because sometimes the tooth goes through the lip. Then he will look if the nerve is exposed.<\/p>\n
There are three types of fractures in teeth, Patella said. One involves just enamel, and another involves enamel and dentin, the hard, dense bony material beneath enamel. In both cases, he would be able to just smooth the tooth out. The third circumstance would be if the nerve or pulp tissue are exposed, which he said is “quite painful” and requires immediate action. He could numb the player\u2019s tooth then do something immediately after the game \u2014 potentially a root canal, covering it with a composite material or splinting a loose tooth to stabilize it, depending on the scenario. If a tooth falls out, he has to put it back in within 30 minutes to save it.<\/p>\n
“In almost every case, I can get them back out there,” Patella said.<\/p>\n
The only time a player hypothetically would not be able to return is if they fracture their jaw or the supporting bone of the tooth. But …<\/p>\n
“Sometimes, with these guys, they\u2019re just bulls,” Patella said. “They just want to go back out.”<\/p>\n
Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech has had teeth knocked out before, but he said “nothing really happens. You just keep playing, and then you go see the dentist the next day.”<\/p>\n
He added: “The injuries that \u2014 knock on wood \u2014 are possible out there, I think losing a couple teeth is no big deal, honestly.”<\/p>\n
![\"Ben](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1772048948_405_image.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n