Jack Eichel May Face Suspension for Ruthless Hit Into the Boards
Vegas Golden Knights forward Jack Eichel may face a suspension for a ruthless hit into the boards he landed last night in a game against the Edmonton Oilers.
The Golden Knights were in Edmonton last night to face Connor McDavid and the Oilers for a Pacific Division showdown.
Most hockey fans can agree that both teams are poised for a long playoff run next Spring, and hope to see a high level of intensity every time they battle on the ice.
Yesterday, Jack Eichel proved that he's ready to compete hard by landing a solid hit on Oilers' defenseman Mattias Ekholm.
Ekholm, 34, has been one of the most useful defensemen in Edmonton this season, tallying 12 points in 30 games this season with a +8 rating.
Fans got quite a scare yesterday when he laid on the ice after being severely hit by Eichel on the boards.
Indeed, both players were going at full speed to the corner of the ice in a race for the puck. As they were approaching the boards, Ekholm got there first and barely managed to push the puck away before receiving a massive hit from Eichel, which sent the defenseman head-first on the boards.
Fortunately, Ekholm remained in the game, but what surprised most fans was seeing that the referees didn't call a penalty on Eichel.
Watch the incident here:
After the game, many shared their frustration on X, saying Eichel should be suspended for what he did:
It'll be interesting to see what the NHL's Department of Player Safety will decide to do now. Usually, when no penalties are called on the ice, we don't see a suspension. However, a fine could still be on the table for Eichel.
The DoPS has until 5 pm. to share their verdict on the situation. If nothing happens by then, we'll assume that no consequences will be imposed on the Golden Knights' forward.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Connor McDavid | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Roope Hintz | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Zach Hyman | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Leon Draisaitl | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Niko Mikkola | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Sam Reinhart | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Carter Verhaeghe | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Anton Lundell | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Jason Robertson | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Lian Bichsel | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jesper Boqvist | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Connor Brown | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gustav Forsling | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Kasperi Kapanen | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Kiefer Sherwood | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Dylan Strome | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Matthew Tkachuk | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jamie Benn | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Sam Bennett | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Evan Bouchard | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 32 | 22 | 9 | 1 | 45 | |
Capitals | 29 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 44 | |
Wild | 31 | 20 | 7 | 4 | 44 | |
Golden Knights | 31 | 20 | 8 | 3 | 43 | |
Devils | 33 | 20 | 10 | 3 | 43 | |
Maple Leafs | 31 | 19 | 10 | 2 | 40 | |
Hurricanes | 30 | 19 | 10 | 1 | 39 | |
Kings | 30 | 18 | 9 | 3 | 39 | |
Oilers | 30 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 38 | |
Panthers | 31 | 18 | 11 | 2 | 38 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||