Toronto Maple Leafs forward Clarke MacArthur suspended for hit on Detroit Red Wings Justin Abdelkader
Toronto Maple Leafs lost one of their big playmakers on Saturday, October 1, as the National Hockey League’s (NHL) senior vice president for player safety and hockey operations, Brendan Shanahan, announced the suspension of Clarke MacArthur for his hit on
Detroit Red Wings forward, Justin Abdelkader, during their preseason matchup.
According to the suspension, MacArthur will miss the remainder of the preseason, along with two regular season games in which Toronto Maple Leafs will face off against Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators on Thursday, October 6 and Saturday, October 8,
respectively.
On the other hand, MacArthur expressed his lack of intention for making what turned out to be an illegal head shot, regarding himself as aiming for the shoulder but hitting his head by mistake.
“Obviously I wasn’t trying to target his head”, MacArthur told reporters after Friday night’s game. “I just grazed him and I think he was trying to draw a penalty . . . I was obviously going for his shoulder and trying to get out of the zone with the puck
there”.
MacArthur might not be as frustrated with the duration of the suspension as he is to the number of them being handed out nowadays, terming the process as something which will eliminate hitting altogether, ultimately making the game less exciting.
“That’s what is going to happen. No one wants to take five-, 10-game suspensions. When you go to finish your hit, you really have to weigh the factors of that. A play like mine, I would turn away (if he had to do it over again) and not even go near him.
But what’s done is done”, MacArthur added.
Brendan Shanahan expressed the suspension as being not as harsh as the others due to MacArthur being a first time offender and that the shot did not cause any sort of injury. For the NHL, this certainly is a time when either players will become fed up over
time or will comply in a hesitant manner.
The 26-year-old left winger will be eligible to make a comeback on Toronto’s roster on Saturday, October 15, as they host Calgary Flames in their third matchup of the regular season.
Tags: