Zac Rinaldo was suspended eight games by the NHL’s department of player safety for last week’s hit on Penguins defenseman Kris Letang, the league announced Monday evening.
Philadelphia’s Zac Rinaldo has been suspended for eight games for charging and boarding Pittsburgh’s Kris Letang.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) January 27, 2015
Here’s video of the hit:
There’s no full explanation from the league as they usually give, presumably because half of the player safety department was on a bus from Columbus to New York today. But it’s as clear as day: boarding, charging, whatever you want to call it. It was an illegal hit and eight games is a fair suspension. In all honesty, he probably could’ve been given more.
It’s the longest suspension of Rinaldo’s career. He’s now been suspended three times at the NHL level. He’ll be eligible to return to the Flyers lineup against the Blue Jackets on February 17. But will the Flyers need him? He’s already been a healthy scratch this season, and a lot of people seem to have soured on Rinaldo after this latest incident. That’s the next question. We’ll see in a few weeks.
