LAS VEGAS — The Vegas Golden Knights will be without their best defenseman in Game 5 of their second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers hanging in the balance.
Alex Pietrangelo was suspended for one game by the NHL Department of Player Safety for a slash against Edmonton. Leon Draisit scored in the final two minutes of the Oilers' 4–1 victory to tie the series at 2–2.
“It was a really, really dangerous slash,” Draistel said before the announcement. “I think these are things that have nothing to do with hockey or sports. You can seriously injure someone with such a slash.
The NHL cited Pietrangelo's history of being neither fined nor suspended before in his 15-year career, indicating that this was one of the reasons why he did not receive harsher punishment.
Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said, “He's got no history of suspension or being called on the carpet by the league.” “Petro is a very honest player, I can confirm that. We like the way he plays for us.”
Oilers will be without a defenseman Darnell Nurse, who received inciting and misdemeanor penalties for fighting Nick Hague followed by Pietrangelo's slash. Because the instigating penalty occurred in the last minute, it is an automatic one-game suspension, a decision upheld by the NHL.
“I was surprised,” said the nurse. “You go through a whole sequence of events, several times being asked to fight by him, several times even before the puck drops during the sequence of the play. It's a fight that happens between two people I think that were ready to fight.
Woodcroft was fined $10,000.
Tensions have been high throughout the series and they came to a boiling point on Wednesday. Misconduct penalties handed down to Vegas' Chandler Stephenson, Jonathan Marchesault and Brett Howden as well as Edmonton Calor Yamamoto and Evander Kane. The Knights Hague went out to fight.
kane, a longtime Knights nemesis dating back to his days with the San Jose Sharks, has been at the center of bad blood. He started a running back at the end of the second period in Game 3 and cross-checked Pietrangelo; A game earlier, Kane was assessed a double minor and a 10-minute misconduct after repeatedly hitting Vegas. Keegan Kolesar lying on the ice.
The Knights were the least penalized team in the NHL during the regular season, but they have not been blameless in this series. In Game 1 Pietrangelo received a roughing penalty.
This series has turned into a best-of-three, and it could be decided by which is the more disciplined side.
“Clean physicality is fine,” Cassidy said. “The stuff that doesn't belong needs to be addressed and managed by the officials in the game.”
NHL suspends Nurse, Pietrangelo on eve of crucial Game 5 between Golden Knights, Oilers originally appeared NBCSports.com