Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar will have a hearing today with the Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head on Bo Horvat.
The play came late in Thursday's 4-1 Islanders win, and it touched off a scrum that carried into the final minutes.
Nazar finished the night with 20 penalty minutes, so the officials clearly weren't letting it slide either.
He also scored Chicago's only goal, which makes his night swing from the scoresheet to the penalty box in a hurry.
Stefen Rosner doesn't expect a heavy punishment. “I could see Nazar getting, at most, one game,” he wrote, adding that a fine is also possible.
If the league agrees it was a check to the head, a fine alone would feel light.
That would be like handing a parking ticket to a driver who just ran a red light. Technically a penalty, but nobody learns much from it.
-
-
Controversy erupts after Frank Nazar's hit on Brock Nelson
Rosner's bigger concern was Horvat, writing there's zero reason to play him Saturday if he feels off in any way.
The Islanders forward had scored twice before the check, and he now has 4 goals on the season, 3 of them on the power play.
He carries an $8,500,000 cap hit, and New York can't afford to lose him for long.
Emil Heineman scored the winner for New York on Thursday, with Anthony Duclair also finding the net.
The Islanders host Tampa Bay on Saturday night, then Vancouver on Tuesday.
Will the league's ruling land before anyone knows how Horvat actually feels?
Chicago, meanwhile, sits at 1-4-0 and 29th in the league.
Nazar has 3 points on the season, but his -5 rating tells a rougher story.
Jeff Blashill already has Teuvo Teravainen and Andrew Mangiapane on the injury list, so losing Nazar would thin things out even more.
The Blackhawks host Carolina on Saturday and Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
Earlier in the same game, Nazar went barreling toward an open bench door. How long Thursday lingers is now up to the league.
Should Frank Nazar be suspended for his check to the head on Bo Horvat?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Frank Seravalli reveals what the Canadiens were offered for Kirby Dach and it's wild
