J.T. Miller's cross-check on Mike Amadio Saturday should have been a major, and the Rangers captain could be hearing from Player Safety.
The play was ugly. Miller drove Amadio from behind about four feet from the boards, and the Senators forward went headfirst into the wall.
That's the exact scenario every player is taught to avoid from the time he's a kid in youth hockey.
How it wasn't a five-minute major is hard to explain. Miller finished the night with two penalty minutes.
To be fair to the captain, he looked like he felt bad right after it. He may also have felt Amadio sold the contact on his way into the boards.
Neither changes much. The clip doesn't lie, and the danger of that play is exactly what the league will be looking at.
Will the Department of Player Safety review it? It should. A suspension wouldn't be out of line.
Drake Batherson's hat trick buries the Rangers in Ottawa
The good news for Ottawa: Amadio stayed in it and finished with a goal and an assist in 17:13.
Drake Batherson scored three times, and Jake Sanderson had the winner as part of a three-point night in a 7-4 Senators win.
Jonas Johansson made 24 saves on 28 shots for the win.
The Rangers are now 1-5-1 on the road, losers of two straight.
Dylan Garand gave up five goals on 22 shots.
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A cross-check that close to the boards is like rolling through a stop sign at a school crossing. Maybe nothing happens, but you don't get to argue intent when something does.
Miller has a -7 rating over his last five games. His own game needed fixing before Saturday.
Mike Sullivan needs his captain on the ice Monday against Los Angeles. If Player Safety sees it the way the clip shows it, the Rangers will have to learn to play without him.
Should J.T. Miller be suspended for his cross-check on Mike Amadio?
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