Mere days after Nazem Kadri was suspended by his own team for three games, the Toronto Maple Leafs forward faces a suspension of another kind.
Kadri will have a phone hearing with the NHL’s department of player safety Wednesday for delivering an illegal check to the head of Edmonton Oilers forward Matt Fraser Monday night.
With 9:06 remaining in the third period of the Maple Leafs’ 4-1 loss to the Oilers, Kadri delivered a high hit to Fraser and was dealt a minor penalty for an illegal check to the head.
Fraser had to be helped off the ice and did not return to the game. He suffered a concussion from the hit and is going through protocol.
Edmonton captain Andrew Ference retaliated less than four minutes later by slamming Kadri into the boards.
“He was just kind of bent over a little bit, and I felt like I was just trying to squeeze by him, but then again, things happen quick. I didn’t mean to hurt him,” Kadri told reporters.
“I don’t consider myself a dirty player. I felt like my hands were down. It happens fast, but you hate to see a guy being taken off like that.
“I don’t even think there was a call to begin with. I feel like if the officials felt it was something dirty or really questionable, then I wouldn’t have gotten a major and tossed on the spot.”
Because Kadri’s hearing will take place via telephone, his suspension cannot exceed five games.
