BREAKING: Blues' Oskar Sundqvist Suspended One Game for Boarding Bruins' Matt Grzelcyk in Game 2
By Scott Rogust
The NHL's Player Safety Department laid down the law on St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist.
On Thursday night, the league suspended Sundqvist for one game after boarding Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final.
St. Louis’ Oskar Sundqvist has been suspended for one game for Boarding Boston’s Matt Grzelcyk. https://t.co/2W0ZLnn9fI
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) May 31, 2019
In the final two minutes of the first period, Grzelcyk chased after the puck in Boston's territory. As he looked to make a wrap-around pass, Sundqvist roared into the boards, with his elbow making contact with the back of Grzelcyk's head.
Grzelcyk immediately grabbed his head as he fell to the ice and both teams engaged in a scrum following the hit.
Despite the nasty nature of the hit, on-ice officials gave Sundqvist a two-minute minor instead of a five-minute major. With Grzelcyk taken out of the game, Boston had to play with five defensemen for the remainder of the night.
Oskar Sundqvist hits #Bruins' Matt Grzelcyk from behind late in the 1st and gets two minutes for boarding.
— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) May 30, 2019
Do you think 2 minutes was enough? ? #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/byrlK1nv8n
Following the conclusion of the game, Grzelcyk was taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation and was later placed in concussion protocol. As a result, he was not cleared to travel with the team to St. Louis for Game 3.
The expectation was that the NHL would make up for the controversial penalty ruling, and now Sundqvist will have to sit out for Game 3.