from Kevin Woodley at the NHL website,

Missing front teeth might be one of the most cliched signs of being a hockey player, but contrary to popular belief, NHL goalies are not excluded from this club.

Their fancily adorned full face masks may cover the mouth area, unlike the helmets worn by skaters. Yet when rising pucks catch them the right way in the mask, it can feel like being punched in the mouth. And sometimes, perhaps more than most realize, the bottom edge of the mask's face opening is slammed up hard enough to knock some -- or at least parts of some -- teeth out.

It doesn't even need to be a slap shot.

"Mine aren't fully lost but both of my front teeth are capped in the middle," said Jake Allen of the Montreal Canadiens. "A wrist shot hit the mask and it came up and hit the top of my teeth in morning skate. It wasn't ideal, but it was all right. Just fill them in for now and I'll fix it when hockey is over. There's no point in doing it now."

That's because Allen knows there's always a chance another shot catches his mask and drives the lower chin portion into his top teeth.

Goalies seem more aware of the possibility after Ben Bishop lost his front teeth while making a save for the Tampa Bay Lightning against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 25, 2016. He admitted at the time he was shocked.

continued