Tampa Bay’s Richard Panik gets 2-game suspension for boarding Karl Alzner
There have been five suspensions for boarding since the start of the NHL regular season. Two of them were for five games, not coincidentally the two that had victims of his ending up on stretchers. The other three were for two games each, again not coincidentally the three that did not involve a stretcher.
Richard Panik of the Tampa Bay Lightning hit Karl Alzner of the Washington Capitals into the boards on Tuesday night, earning a 5-minute major for a rather egregious hit. Alzner was shaken up but wasn’t seriously injured.
So no stretcher. Hence, two games from the Department of Player Safety. As the video shows*:
From the NHL:
Tampa Bay Lightning forward Richard Panik has been suspended for two games, without pay, for boarding Washington Capitals defenseman Karl Alzner during NHL Game No. 459 in Washington on Tuesday, Dec. 10, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced today.
The incident occurred at 16:31 of the second period. A major penalty for boarding was assessed to Panik on the play.
Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and, based on his average annual salary, Panik will forfeit $7,589.74. The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
Panik is 16th in average ice time for the Lightning with 14:08, playing second-unit power play and nary a second shorthanded. It’s only two games. No need for Tampa Bay to Pani… , er, panic.
* With Brendan Shanahan off doing Board of Governors stuff, that would be the golden tones of Patrick Burke on the Dept. of Player Safety video. Close your eyes and you can hear a bit of Papa Burke in the voice, although at no point does Patrick say “you guys in the media probably wanted 10 games…”
