Cutter Gauthier hits Auston Matthews in the face with his skate.

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews is extremely lucky to have avoided disaster in this situation.

On Sunday night, Matthews and the Maple Leafs faced off against the Anaheim Ducks and it would be during that game's second period that Matthews would come dangerously close to a catastrophe.

Late in the second frame, Matthews would use his big body to win a puck battle against Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier, but in the process he would send Gauthier sailing through the air, unable to stop his forward momentum. As Gauthier went flying through the air his foot would come right up to Matthews' face and the top of his skate would strike Matthews in his visor. Matthews' head would go reeling back as a result of the impact, but thankfully the protective shield on Matthews' helmet prevented what could have been extremely serious damage.

Here's a look at a close up of the incident in question:

It was no doubt a terrifying moment for Matthews who briefly looked around as if in disbelief after everything that had just transpired in the blink of an eye, but thankfully no real harm was done.

No doubt a situation like this involving such a prominent player will reignite the conversation around what kind of cut-resistant equipment hockey players should be wearing, a conversation that has gained considerable steam in recent years due to a series of unfortunate events such as this one.

Thankfully this time no one was injured.