blindness + hiltsmash

Saw this in a log. Shaman fighting 2h paladin. Paladin's helm of brilliance blinds shaman, then paladin immediately lands a hiltsmash face. Shaman flees and communes "cure blindness" and can see again. I would think that one of the following would happen instead: 1. He'd cure the blindness but would still be affected by the hiltsmash face, i.e. still be unable to see. 2. The hiltsmash face would have failed to land because the target was already blind (similar to how dirt kick doesn't land when you're kicking dirt at a blind person).