Sam Reinhart Facing Suspension After Being Ejected for Dirty Hit on Ducks Defensemen
Florida Panthers forward Sam Reinhart is likely to be suspended tomorrow after he made a very dirty hit on Ducks defenseman Isac Lundestrom.
The NHL Department of Player Safety will be busy again tonight and tomorrow as they review another brutal hit.
Just yesterday, the DoPS handed out a three-game suspension to Maxim Tsyplakov for his hit on Joel Farabee.
That play certainly did not seem as bad as what happened tonight, and the refs seemed to agree as Tsyplakov never even got a penalty for it.
Tonight things were different as Sam Reinhart earned himself a five-minute major penalty as well as a game misconduct for kneeing Isac Lundestrom.
This seems like a pretty cut and dry case. He clearly leads with his knee, and targets Lundestrom in a vulnerable position.
While the Department of Player Safety is mainly a joke to fans, most agree that this case is too obvious not to warrant a suspension.
Losing Reinhart for any amount of games will be tough for the Panthers as he has become one of their most important players.
This season he already has 27 goals and 51 points in 46 games leading the team in both categories.
The next closest in either category is Matthew Tkachuk, who has just 14 goals and and 40 points.
Making matters worse for Reinhart is the fact that Lundestrom was injured on the play.
The DoPS often seems to hand out harsher rulings when the other player involved suffers an injury, particularly if it is serious.
Lundestrom went to the Duck's locker room after the play and has not returned.
Similarly, the team has not updated us on his status since the hit was made.
Hopefully he will be okay. Regardless, be sure to stay tuned tomorrow for the announcement regarding Reinhart's fate.
