The NHL rendered its verdict on that controversial hit from Thursday: Dallas Stars forward Cody Eakin will sit four games for his “intentional, forceful” check on New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist.
Sitting out four games without pay will cost Eakin $85,555.56.
As you can see from the explanation video below, the league believed that he didn’t make a reasonable effort to avoid contact with Lundqvist, instead “loading up” and “bracing for” the collision. They consider this charging.
On the other hand, Lundqvist returning to the game and Eakin’s lack of a suspension history helped to limit the punishment: