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Mitch Callahan is escorted off the ice by trainer John Bernal after he was struck in the mouth by a puck April 2.

(Andrew Kuhn | MLive.com)

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Grand Rapids Griffins forward Mitch Callahan said he didn’t have any grand plan when he posted a wildly popular - and gory - photo of himself on Twitter shortly after he was struck in the mouth by a puck.

Callahan, 22, was hit by roommate Ryan Sproul’s hard slap shot while camped in front of the net in the Griffins’ 6-1 victory against Iowa on April 2. He bent over before quickly escorted off the ice by team trainer John Bernal with a towel wrapped around his face.

He underwent surgery the following day for a fractured jaw and a mouthful of lost teeth.

"I realized it wasn't great when teeth were just falling out of my mouth. And the puddle of blood didn't help either," Callahan said in an email exchange Monday, April 7, with The Grand Rapids Press/MLive.com. His jaw is wired shut, limiting his speech.



After he left the ice, Callahan posted the following tweet with photo link (caution, it is graphic):

Asked why he did it, Callahan replied, “I posted it because a lot of people were asking me how I was, so I just decided to throw a pic up.”

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Callahan still isn’t sure how many teeth he lost. He already was missing his front two teeth.

"I believe I lost one for sure up top and about seven or eight on the bottom," he said.



As for his initial reaction to the injury, Callahan wrote: "As soon as the puck hit me, my teeth instantly flew out. I was hoping I had lost only a few teeth and would get some stitches so I could join the guys and come back for the game.

“Our trainer told me I wasn't returning and that it looks to be more serious than I thought. Then it hit me to be a serious injury when I was told I needed surgery.”

The 6-foot, 195-pound Callahan, in his third season with the Griffins, is the team’s third leading scorer with 44 points and second in goals with 26. Before the injury, he was the only member of the Griffins who had played in every game this season.

Since, Callahan said he has begun exercising and hopes to be back in time for the playoffs, which begin the week if April 21, “if not sooner.” He would likely be equipped with a protective face guard with his helmet.

“The pain is one thing but being away from the game is the worst,” he wrote. “I've been overlooking the pain so I can try to take as much care and get back as soon as possible.”

Pete Wallner covers sports for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at pwallner@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.