It was a busy day at NHL HQ as after Calgary Flames forward Rene Bourque was given five games for elbowing Nicklas Backstrom of the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers Head Coach John Tortorella was fined $30,00o for his post-Winter Classic comments about the officiating in the third period.
To end the day, Chicago Blackhawks forward Dan Carcillo was given a 7-game suspension for his hit on Tom Gilbert of the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night.
Brendan Shanahan explains the decision:
From the NHL:
Chicago Blackhawks forward Daniel Carcillo has been suspended for seven games and will forfeit $66,158.54 in salary for boarding Edmonton Oilers defenseman Tom Gilbert during NHL Game #571 in Chicago on Monday, Jan. 2, the National Hockey League's Department of Player Safety announced today.
Carcillo, who was suspended on Nov. 28, 2011, is classified as a repeat offender under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Accordingly, he forfeits his salary based on the number of games in the season (82), rather than the number of days (185). The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.
The incident occurred at 7:23 of the second period. A major penalty for boarding and a game misconduct were assessed on the play.
Carcillo will miss games Jan. 5 at Philadelphia, Jan. 6 vs. Colorado, Jan. 8 vs. Detroit, Jan. 10 vs. Columbus, Jan. 12 vs. Minnesota, Jan. 14 at Detroit and Jan. 15 vs. San Jose. He will be eligible to return Jan. 18 vs. Buffalo.
As the video explained, Carcillo was suspended back in October, one of the now-nine times he's been fined or banned in his career.
This suspension was expected to be a lengthy one after Carcillo waived his right to an in-person hearing -- typically meaning at least five games are coming.
Carcillo suffered a knee injury during the hit and it's currently unknown when he'll return to the Blackhawks. Couple that with Marcus Kruger's concussion and Head Coach Joel Quenneville will have some lineup maneuvering to do as the Blackhawks prepare for the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night.