We see bodily fluids all over the ice during a hockey game, but we don’t usually see anyone being punished for it.
During Sunday’s game between the New York Rangers and the Los Angeles Kings, New York Blueliner K’Andre Miller was penalized for the game and was ejected from the game for spitting at Los Angeles rearguard Drew. Doughty. It all happened during a hectic bout after the whistle, just over 16 minutes after the first puck had been thrown.
Miller approves the act was not intentional and that he talked about it with Doughty after the game. However, Miller was not allowed on the ice for the remainder of the competition.
The timing couldn’t have been worse either. New York has already played with just five defensemen due to cap scams associated with a potential trade for Patrick Kane and didn’t dress up young blueliner Braden Schneider for Sunday’s game. The Rangers had only four defensemen left to play the remaining 44 minutes of the game. Despite difficult circumstances, New York was still able to take a 5-2 win.
We haven’t seen an on-ice incident like this since Garnet Hathaway spat in Eric Goodbranson’s face back in 2019. This whole scene was more chaotic than the interaction between Miller and Doughty, but the result was the same – a penalty match.
Hathaway was eventually suspended for three games after a very obvious spitting incident. Do we see the same result for Miller? The NHL Player Safety Department will no doubt take a close look at Sunday’s series of events and make a decision.
In 59 games this season, Miller scored six goals and 30 points, finishing second on the team in playing time. The Rangers entered the game on Sunday with 75 points in 59 games, a strong showing for third place in the competitive Capital Division.
Source: sports.yahoo.com
