Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane will face a hearing on Sunday from the NHL's Department of Player Safety for his hit from behind on Colorado Avalanche centre Nazem Kadri.
The hit, which took place in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Saturday night, came early in the first period and knocked Kadri out of the game.
Kane was assessed a five-minute major boarding on the play, but was not ejected from the game. The hearing raises the possibility of him being suspended for Game 4 on Monday night. The Oilers are down 3-0 in the series, with Kane
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar later said Kadri would not be playing again anytime soon.
"He's out — he'll be out for the series at least, if not longer. The hit is the most dangerous hit in hockey," he said.
Kane explained his view of what happened post-game:
“I was just coming in on the back-check. Puck went wide, kind of dribbled into the corner. I know he likes to reverse hit. I was just trying to get up on him, that’s really all I did,” said Kane. “Unfortunately he went into the boards awkwardly and hurt his hand.”
