Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk appears to have avoided further action from the NHL following his ejection in Game 3.
Matthew Tkachuk will not face a hearing or receive any supplemental discipline for the hit on Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jake Guentzel during Saturday night`s game.
The NHL`s Department of Player Safety based its decision on several factors: the force of the hit was deemed less severe than a previous hit by Brandon Hagel on Aleksander Barkov, there was no head contact involved, and Guentzel had touched the puck just before the impact.
The hit occurred in the final minutes of Game 3, resulting in the Panthers forward receiving a major penalty and being ejected from the game.
The impact happened immediately after Guentzel played the puck during Anthony Cirelli`s empty-net goal, which extended the Lightning`s lead to 5-1 with five minutes remaining in the game.
Guentzel remained in the game, and his teammates reacted to the hit by confronting Tkachuk. After the game, the Lightning forward expressed his hope that the NHL would review the hit for potential discipline.
“I passed the puck, and it felt like there was a significant delay before I was hit. I`m confident the league will review it. Given the events of the past few games, I expect they will handle the situation appropriately.”
