New York Rangers D Ryan Lindgren will not be suspended by the NHL after the league determined that Tuesday night’s hit was unavoidable.
The New York Rangers and Ryan Lindgren are currently breathing a sigh of relief. The 21-year-old defenseman will not be suspended by the NHL for Tuesday night’s hard hit on Colorado’s Joonas Donskoi.
The massive hit took place in the second period of the Rangers’ 5-3 victory over the Avalanche. The on-ice officials didn’t call a penalty on the play. Lindgren did receive a five-minute major for fighting though. He and Nazem Kadri initiated an altercation during the continuation of play right after the check on Donskoi.
The NHL Player Safety Twitter account provided a full explanation of why a suspension isn’t necessary for Lindgren.
(2/2) While there was significant head contact on this play, Lindgren took a proper angle of approach, did not extend outward or upward and hit through Donskoi’s core. Therefore, under Rule 48.1 (i), the head contact was determined to be unavoidable.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) January 8, 2020
The overall ruling is very unusual. When a phone hearing is involved, the norm commonly entails at least some sort of suspension. The NHLPA must have done their due diligence by assisting Lindgren in his conversation with the league.
Lindgren was kept out of the game after receiving medical attention for the laceration under his right eye, which was a result of the fight with Kadri.
The Rangers didn’t have a practice scheduled for Wednesday and his availability for there next game on Thursday against the New Jersey Devils is currently unknown.
New York’s ousting of the Avalanche was their first win since Dec. 28, when they defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-4 in overtime. They’re now 20-18-4 and sit in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division.
