Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad faces another setback in his career. Ekblad has been served a two-game suspension for elbowing Tampa Bay Lightning forward Brandon Hagel in the head during Game 4 of their current series. The decision was handed down after a review by the NHL's Department of Player Safety, which led to a phone hearing with the player earlier this week, as reported by NBC Miami.
Complications for the Panthers are mounting as they're set to be without Ekblad for Game 5, and potentially either Game 6 of this series or their first game in the next round. It's a fresh blow for Ekblad, who just served a 20-game suspension for a violation of the league's PED policy, CBS Sports explains. "This is a direct blow to an opponent's head with an extended elbow, delivered with requisite force for supplemental discipline," the league stated about the suspension.
There was no call on the play when it occurred in the second period of Monday night's game, which saw Ekblad later score the first of two Panthers' goals in a span of 11 seconds during the ending moments of the third period. The victory, unfortunately for the Panthers, came with this costly suspension. The incident also sidelined Hagel, who, according to Tampa Bay's coach Jon Cooper in an interview with CBS Sports, will not be making an appearance in Game 5 due to the injury from Ekblad's elbowing. "He's not playing tomorrow, and you know why," Cooper said, expressing frustration over the loss of one of their top performers, Hagel, who tallied 90 points in the regular season.
Though faced with these setbacks, both teams will have to adapt. Florida has some familiarity with playing in the absence of Ekblad, as noted by NBC Miami, with coach Paul Maurice admitting, "Because we’ve been through it so much when Aaron’s out we know what the D-pairs are — let's assume — if he’s out of the lineup." On the other side of the ice, the Lightning are under pressure as they return home, trailing 3-1 in the series and facing elimination.
