Anaheim Ducks forward Trevor Zegras received a three-game suspension after his hit to the head of Detroit Red Wings forward Michael Rasmussen on Sunday.
The discipline came down Monday, after Zegras had a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety.
Rasmussen had already chipped the puck up the ice and was not looking when Zegras delivered a shoulder to his head and neck area. Rasmussen, 25, was slow to get up and did not return to the game.
No interference penalty was called on the play in question, which happened late in the second period of the Ducks’ 5-4 overtime loss at Detroit.
“Zegras begins his hitting motion after Rasmussen releases the puck and contact is made outside the window where a check may be legally finished,” a Player Safety official said in an explanation video. “In addition to the lateness, what causes this hit to rise to the level of supplemental discipline is the significant head contact on this play, combined with the force.”
Zegras, 23, will miss a road game at the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday, followed by home games Thursday and Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks. He is eligible to return March 4 at the Edmonton Oilers.
It marks his first career suspension.
Zegras has recorded seven goals and nine assists in 34 games this season. He has 170 points (62 goals, 108 assists) in 245 games since the Ducks drafted with the ninth overall pick in 2019.
Rasmussen has nine goals and six assists in 56 games this season. He has 135 career points (58 goals, 77 assists) in 369 games with the Red Wings, who drafted him ninth overall in 2017.
–Field Level Media
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