The NHL Department Of Player Safety announced that Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk has been suspended two games for high-sticking Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick.
Tkachuk Suspended For High Sticking
Florida’s Matthew Tkachuk has been suspended for two games for high-sticking Los Angeles’ Jonathan Quick. https://t.co/kevNiE1CCF
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) November 6, 2022
The incident occurred during Saturday’s matchup, where Tkachuk took a swipe at Quick’s facemask during a play close to the net. Quick immediately went down, but would stay in the game, and record 34 saves to lead the Kings to a 5-4 win.
This will be Tkachuk’s fourth career suspension. His last suspension coming in December 2017 after spearing Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matt Martin.
What This Means
For the Kings, they are lucky that Quick wasn’t injured during the play. He has been the better of their two goaltenders this season, posting a 3.34 GAA and a 0.890 SV%. The Kings are in a decent spot this season. They are currently 7-6-1 to start the year, and are currently third in the Western Conference. Although they could rely on Cal Petersen if Quick was injured on the play. He hasn’t looked like himself and currently posts a GAA over 4, and a SV% below 870.
If an eye injury were to occur to Quick, it also likely would’ve ended his career at this stage. It ended the careers of Scott Niedermayer and Johnny Boychuk. Considering that Quick is 36, it would be a long and hard recovery for him.
For the Panthers, they lose one of their top stars for two games. The Cats are in a tight battle with the other teams in the Atlantic. They currently sit at 13 points with a 6-5-1 record. Florida could move up or down in the standings depending on how these next two games go. Currently, there is a 3-point difference between them and the second-place Detroit Red Wings, and they could close that gap without Tkachuk. or, they could lose both games, and make no progress.
Matthew Tkachuk’s 13 points (5-8-13) since joining the #FlaPanthers are tied with Sam Bennett (2020-21) and Pavel Bure (1998-99) for the most through a players first nine games with the club (h/t @PR_NHL). pic.twitter.com/Ua5TfpFyo7
— Florida Panthers PR (@FlaPanthersPR) October 30, 2022
