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Kyle Clifford suspended pending review of his check to Gilbert Brule’s head

Los Angeles Kings v New York Islanders

UNIONDALE, NY - FEBRUARY 11: Kyle Clifford #13 of the Los Angeles Kings in action against the New York Islanders on February 11, 2012 at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. The Islanders defeated the Kings 2-1 in overtime. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

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Kings forward Kyle Clifford is getting a night off tonight against the Avalanche and may be looking at more time.

Clifford was assessed a five-minute major and a match penalty for delivering an illegal check to the head of Phoenix forward Gilbert Brule late in the third period. Phoenix would score on the power play to tie the game and eventually beat the Kings in the shootout. Clifford has been suspended pending a review of the play and with the Kings right back at it tonight, the league had to act quickly.

Take a look at the play yourselves.

The Kings aren’t exactly happy about how things shook out on the ice after the hit with the officials. Rich Hammond of L.A. Kings Insider hears from both Dustin Brown and Darryl Sutter about it and Sutter’s take is most interesting.

Sutter said that the officials told him they have the right to go back and change their mind on a call and that one of the four officials saw the play as a major and decided to make that call instead. Sutter didn’t care for the sudden change of heart when the referees had originally settled on it being a minor penalty.

Reacting to an apparent injury is nothing new when it comes to penalties. While it seems like they got the call right, that kind of action is what frustrates players the most.