Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane has been suspended one game by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety for his hit from behind on Colorado Avalanche centre Nazem Kadri.
The hit, which took place in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Saturday night, came early in the first period and knocked Kadri out of the game.
Kane was assessed a five-minute major boarding on the play, but was not ejected from the game. The Oilers will now be without Kane down 3-0 in the series and facing elimination on Monday.
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar later said Kadri would not be playing again anytime soon.
“He’s out — he’ll be out for the series at least, if not longer. The hit is the most dangerous hit in hockey,” he said.
Kane explained his view of what happened post-game:
“I was just coming in on the back-check. Puck went wide, kind of dribbled into the corner. I know he likes to reverse hit. I was just trying to get up on him, that’s really all I did,” said Kane. “Unfortunately he went into the boards awkwardly and hurt his hand.”
