Nazem Kadri suspended four games for head-shot on Matt Fraser

Nazem Kadri of the Toronto Maple Leafs says his head-shot on Matt Fraser was unintentional. He skated over to the Edmonton Oilers forward after the incident on Tuesday and checked on his status. He seemed generally contrite.

But that doesn’t change the fact it was a reckless play, and Kadri paid the price on Wednesday: The NHL gave him a 4-game suspension.

Maybe this guy is a Ryan Gosling level thespian, but I felt everything Kadri’s done in the wake of this indicated it was an accident. A bad choice, to be sure, but not malicious targeting of the head.

The NHL Department of Player Safety video would seem to agree with that, making it clear the Kadri's approach and his committment to delivering a hit on Fraser were both bad choices.

The fact that Fraser suffered a concussion was damning; the fact that Kadri received a 3-game suspension last season for a head shot on Niklas Backstrom of the Minnesota Wild is what probably led to four games.

Of course, another theory is that the NHL is doing former Player Safety Czar Brendan Shanahan a solid by taking away a top six forward for four games as the Leafs try to plummet to the bottom of the standings like a meteor to Earth.

But that’s just, you know, a theory.

MORE FROM YAHOO SPORTS