Vancouver Canucks defenceman Carson Soucy has been suspended one game for cross-checking Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced Monday.
The incident occurred at the end of the Canucks’ 4-3 win over the Oilers in Game 3 Sunday in Edmonton.
As Soucy and McDavid were slashing each other in the legs, Canucks defenceman Nikita Zadorov cross-checked the Oilers captain from behind. Soucy also delivered a cross-check that appeared to catch McDavid in the throat as he was falling to the ice.
Zadorov was fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the collective bargaining agreement.
Soucy told reporters Monday: “It was an unfortunate incident. There was no intention to hit him that high.”
The 29-year-old Soucy has four points, all assists, in nine games during the playoffs. He also recorded two goals and four assists in 40 games during the regular season.
Soucy has been suspended once previously while he was a member of the Minnesota Wild in March 2021. He received a one-game ban for charging Conor Garland, then with the Arizona Coyotes. Soucy and Garland are now teammates on the Canucks.
Vancouver holds a 2-1 lead in the second-round series. Game 4 is set for Tuesday in Edmonton.
