Detroit Red Wings forward Gustav Nyquist might be hearing from the NHL this week.
In the first period of Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Wild, Nyquist was assessed a double-minor for high-sticking Jared Spurgeon in a vicious and completely reckless manner.
It all happened during a puck battle along the boards when Spurgeon gave Nyquist a cross-check to the back, knocking him to the ice. In response, Nyquist stood up and hit Spurgeon in the face with the blade of his stick in a completely reckless and dangerous manner.
You can see it in the video above.
High-sticking is something the NHL’s department of player safety has suspended for in the past. It issued two last season, a one-game ban for Drew Stafford and a six-game suspension (five regular season games plus a playoff game) to Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith. While Nyquist does not have the high-sticking history that Keith had prior to his suspension (he had been suspended for it before) it is still a pretty vicious play and perhaps even worse.
It was also clearly a retaliatory act.