Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty handed down three-game suspension -NHL Update
Montreal Canadiens young forward, Max Pacioretty, had to face the music after his hit on Pittsburgh Penguins’, Kris Letang, during their matchup on Saturday, November 26, 2011, after which the National Hockey League’s (NHL) senior vice president for player
safety and operations, Brendan Shanahan, made the announcement on Tuesday, November 29, 2011.
The incident was as such that Pacioretty hit Letang with his shoulder directly in the face, which resulted in immediate bleeding and a broken nose after the medical staff examined him in the locker room as the match went on.
Surprisingly, no penalty was called on the player and the game was allowed to continue.
"He's a player that has good vision, is good without the puck," Montreal coach, Jacques Martin, said after Tuesday's practice without Pacioretty. "Unfortunately he missed training camp this year, but he's a young player that we feel has a good upside and
good potential."
According to Pacioretty who faces a three-game suspension, he did not make the hit without knowing that Letang was ready for it since both players made eye contact before the incident took place.
"If you look at the situation, me and Letang made eye contact," Pacioretty said. "I think that's what gave me the green light to try and hit him. I felt he put himself in a vulnerable position."
When asked whether he agrees with the suspension or not, Pacioretty answered with a diplomatic answer by saying that it is something hard to agree with, but nonetheless, the blame is already on him and there would not practically be any point in fighting
it off.
“The blame is still on me; I made a bad decision,” Pacioretty said after practice Tuesday.
Along with the three-game suspension, Pacioretty will be forced to give up $26, 351.34 in his salary, which will be headed to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.
The 23-year-old currently has an impressive 19 point (10 goals, 9 assists) record in the 24 games he has played with the Montreal Canadiens so far, which will certainly be a major loss to the Eastern Conference team in the three games he will be absent.
Max Pacioretty will be able to re-join the Montreal Canadien line up in their matchup at home against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday, December 6, 2011.
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