The NHL Department of Player Safety announced that St.Louis Blues defensemen Robert Bortuzzo has been suspended for four games. This is his second career suspension.
St. Louis’ Robert Bortuzzo has been suspended for four games for Cross-checking Nashville’s Viktor Arvidsson. https://t.co/zYPlLjudxl
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) November 24, 2019
Robert Bortuzzo Suspended
Bortuzzo has been suspended for four games for an incident with Nashville Predators forward, Viktor Arvidsson.
The incident occurred in Saturday night’s game while on the penalty kill during the first period. Bortuzzo crossed checked Arvidsson from behind while in the crease, this caused Arvidsson the fall into the crossbar and then onto the ice. Although it can be considered normal rough hockey play. It was Bortuzzo’s cross-checking of Arvidsson while on the ground combined with his previous DOPS history that led to the four-game suspension.
So far this season, Bortuzzo has failed to score and has one assist for one point. He also added four minutes in penalties. His possession numbers were 48.4 percent Corsi and a relative Corsi of -2.5.
Over his decade long NHL career Bortuzzo has played for the Pittsburgh Penguins and St. Lous Blues. He has put up 14 goals and 39 assists for 53 career points in 346 career games. He was originally drafted in the third round, 78th overall of the 2007 NHL draft by Pittsburgh Penguins.
What This Means for the Future
The 30-year-old defensemen is a bottom pairing but St.Louis will miss the extra toughness and experience in his absence. The Blues look to continue their success of last year and ample talent to choose from but Carl Gunnarsson is the likely candidate to replace the Canadian native, who has similar qualities.
As a result of Bortuzzo’s cross-check, Viktor Arvidsson will miss 4-6 weeks. As a top-line forward, the Predator’s concerns continue. The Predators currently sit second bottom with equal points to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Central Division. Although still time, the Predators have to make some changes if they want to aim for another playoff run. Look for Mikael Granlund, Calle Jarnkrok or Craig Smith to step up in the meantime.
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