The Florida Panthers were close, but they didn’t manage to score the tying goal in Game 4, and the loss means they’re now in a 3-1 Stanley Cup Final deficit. The Panthers were on a 6-4 man advantage to end Game 4, with the Vegas Golden Knights leading the game 3-2, and the Panthers got close, real close, to equalizing.
After the final horn blew, a huge scrum broke out between all the players on the ice, even with players coming from the penalty box.
As the skirmish started, multiple players jumped on Matthew Tkachuk, and Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo came rushing from the penalty box to get in on the action.
But many pointed out that Pietrangelo could have violated an NHL rule by exiting the box to join the scrum.
A Twitter posted a tweet that gained a lot of attention, pointing out Section 9, Rule 70:4, which claims that if a player exits the penalty bench at the stoppage of a play following the expiration of their penalties and gets involved in an altercation, they should be assessed a penalty and a ten game suspension.
Here’s the Tweet, and the rule, in its whole:
The rule also states that it’s only applied if the opposing team of the penalized player is the aggressor. That means Pietrangelo shouldn’t be penalized if Vegas started the fight. The rule also doesn’t state if it applies when the game is finished, as in this case.
Let’s just say that it’s pretty unlikely that Pietrangelo will actually get a 10-game suspension. Still, rules are rules, and earlier this playoff, Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse was suspended one game for an instigator penalty he received late in the series against the Vegas Golden Knights.
On Tuesday, the Golden Knights have an opportunity to win their first-ever Stanley Cup, as they’re now up 3-1 in the series. Let’s see if they’ll have to be without Alex Pietrangelo when everything decides.
