Columbus Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner received a cross-checking major and a questionable game misconduct in a chippy 3-2 shootout loss Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
According to multiple reports Saturday, the NHL informed the Blue Jackets that Jenner’s game misconduct has been rescinded.
Jenner was ejected for getting his stick up high on Penguins forward Jake Guentzel at the end of the second period after the buzzer had sounded. There was nothing particularly vicious about what Jenner did and it wasn’t the type of play that typically results in a five-minute penalty plus a misconduct call.
“I kind of wish we’d just let the teams decide the games instead of other people getting involved in it,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said following the game alluding to Jenner being tossed. “Two teams going at it hard. … That’s the way you’re supposed to play the game. They were hitting. We were hitting. There were a couple of fights here and there. The thing that frustrates me is, then, everybody else get out of the way. Get out of the way and let the players decide the games.”
While there’s no way for the league to make up for the fact the Blue Jackets were without Jenner for the third period, overtime and shootout, it will help Jenner avoid a potential automatic suspension if he gets a game misconduct in a future game this season.
According to NHL Department of Player Safety policy, “Players are automatically suspended if they incur multiple game misconducts in these categories: General Category, Abuse of Officials Category, Stick Infractions Category, Physical Fouls.”
What Jenner did would fall under the stick infractions category.
The Blue Jackets and Penguins combined for 63 penalty minutes in the game, 35 of which occurred in the final 29 seconds of the second period.
Ever since Columbus joined the Metropolitan Division prior to the 2013-14 season, these two teams have developed a heated rivalry. The Penguins eliminated the Blue Jackets from the first round of intense playoff series in 2014 and 2017 and tensions are usually elevated when they meet in the regular season as well.
Penguins star centre Evgeni Malkin even went so far as to say: “We hate each other.”
They play one another three more times this season including a rematch Dec. 27 in Pittsburgh.
[relatedlinks]
