Edmonton Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse has been suspended one game for head-butting Los Angeles Kings forward Phillip Danault in Game 5 of their first-round series on Tuesday, the NHL’s department of player safety announced Wednesday.
The ruling means Nurse will miss Game 6 on Thursday in L.A. The Oilers trail the best-of-seven series 3-2.
The decision was made after the NHL held a hearing with Nurse earlier Wednesday.
The incident occurred with 9.3 seconds remaining in the second period of Edmonton’s eventual 5-4 overtime loss on Tuesday, when Nurse used his head to make contact with Danault, who was near the crease after Oilers goaltender Mike Smith froze the puck following a save. Nurse did not receive a penalty for his actions.
The 27-year-old has been suspended once in his career for serving as the aggressor in a fight with then-San Jose Sharks defenceman Roman Polak in 2016.
The rearguard led all players in ice-time on Tuesday, playing 26:23. The next closest player on the Oilers was Cody Ceci at 22:31.
In five games this post-season, he has one goal, one assist, a plus-five rating and 16 penalty minutes.
