The Canadiens lost 3-2 to the Colorado Avalanche yesterday night at the Bell Center. Claude Julien's team came very close to tying the game at the very end of the third period, after trailing by three goals until the last moments of the second period.
Casting a shadow on this Habs' performance and the introduction of young goaltender Cayden Primeau was a sneaky hit on C Jesperi Kotkaniemi by Avs D Nikita Zadorov. The landing was so brutal that Kotkaniemi had to leave the ice before being brought to the hospital.
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Although no penalty was called on the play, many fans and analysts expected that the Avalanche's defenseman would be receiving a call from the NHL's Department of Player Safety and be suspended or fined.
However, according to what many experts have reported, including RDS' François Gagnon, the 6'5", 229 lbs. Russian defenseman will not receive any punishment from the DoPS.
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Certainly, this decision is highly debatable, especially considering that Jesperi Kotkaniemi did not make the trip to New York with his teammates and that he will, in all likelihood, miss a few games and join the IR list which currently includes Victor Mete, Paul Byron, and Jonathan Drouin.
