For the first time since taking over from Brendan Shannahan as Senior Vice President of Player Safety, Stephane Quintal addressed the NHL general managers during meetings in Toronto on Tuesday.
Quintal’s main concern is the rash of knee-on-knee penalties around the league through the first month and a half of the season.
Zach Kassian is just one example. The Vancouver Canucks forward has missed two weeks of action after colliding with Avalanche defenseman Nick Holden.
Holden was assessed a minor penalty for tripping on the play. Kassian, who is expected to return to Vancouver’s lineup tonight, has missed five games due to an injury resulting from the hit.
“There have been statistically more of those penalties this year versus the last couple years,” said Blackhawks GM, Stan Bowman. “It could just be one of those things that over the first six weeks you’ve had a few more than in the past.
“We touched on the fact that those numbers are up.”