Minnesota Wild defeceman Carson Soucy has been suspended one game for charging Arizona Coyotes‘ Conor Garland. Soucy hit Garland at the boards near the hashmarks, leaving his feet and delivering a high hit. Garland appeared to be okay after the hit, as he returned later in the game.
Minnesota’s Carson Soucy has been suspended for one game for Charging Arizona’s Conor Garland. https://t.co/ArfLAFBdyc
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) March 17, 2021
Carson Soucy Suspended One Game for Charging
The 6-foot, 5-inch defeceman has played fairly significant minutes for the Wild this season. In his second “real” season in the league (only playing 3 games in 2017-18), Soucy is a middle-pairing defeceman. Playing an average of 15 minutes per game, he usually plays on the second or third pairing. However, he doesn’t stand out on either end of the ice. With only 14 points in 55 games last season, his offensive production is nowhere near the top. And his Corsi for this season is a 42.0, with a relative Corsi of -8.4. His big frame allows for him to be more physical, although sometimes he is much too aggressive. With 32 minutes in penalties through 22 games this season, his discipline can be improved.
Moving Forward
Carson Soucy is suspended for the game against the Colorado Avalanche on the 18th. Losing a middle pairing defeceman for one game is not a big deal, especially with rookie goalie Kaapo Kahkonen playing incredible. Currently on a five game win streak, Minnesota sits one point above Colorado in the West Division. With Colorado’s talent, physicality is not the way to beat them. Soucy being suspended forces them to adopt a faster-paced game plan, and not be as physical. However, this game against Colorado is important for standings. Colorado is also heating up, on a four game win streak of their own. This mini-series against Colorado could shift the standings by multiple points, and it is not one the Wild can afford to lose. Losing Soucy is not a massive deal, but it will be a challenge they need to overcome.
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