There’s been a lot of discussions about suspensions in the NHL recently. Morgan Rielly was handed a five-game suspension for his cross-check to the head of Ridly Greig as a response to an empty-net slap shot.
Days earlier, Canucks’ Nikita Zadorov earned a two-game suspension for a hit on Red Wings’ Lucas Raymond.
So when Brad Marchand laid an elbow to the head of Viktor Arvidsson this past weekend, fans were certain that the Bruins captain had a suspension coming his way.
Marchand is known for his aggressive play style, and during his many years in the NHL, he’s served his fair share of suspensions.
But after Marchand raised his elbow and made contact with Arvidsson’s head, no penalty was assessed by the officials.
Marchand remained in the game while Arvidsson received medical attention on the bench. But fans were expecting some disciplinary action from the Department of Player Safety.
But the DoPS didn’t discipline Marchand for the hit, and with the recent suspensions in mind, fans were left confused.
On social media, many delivered harsh criticism against the Department of Player Safety for completely ignoring the hit from the B’s captain.
”A Leafs player with a clean history would definitely get multiple games for this. How many games did one of the most suspended players the past decade get for this? 0 games, actually 0 fine, actually 0 penalty. Also, 0 media coverage. Funny, isn’t it?” said one Leafs fan account on X, formerly known as Twitter.
”From this weekend: no penalty in game, no discipline of any kind. Must be the player’s squeaky clean history,” another Leafs fan account said.
