Rich Clune made some waves in his second game of the season.
The Leafs forward was given a five-minute major for this hit on Pens defenseman Rob Scuderi:
It’s hard to argue with the official’s call on the ice, as Clune hit Scuderi right in the numbers before the defenseman fell into the boards awkwardly.
According to NHL.com, boarding is defined as:
A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously. The severity of the penalty, based upon the impact with the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
The league separates boarding penalties in different categories:
Minor Penalty – The Referee, at his discretion, may assess a minor penalty, based on the degree of violence of the impact with the boards, to a player guilty of boarding an opponent.
Major Penalty – The Referee, at his discretion, may assess a major penalty, based on the degree of violence of the impact with the boards, to a player guilty of boarding an opponent.
Match Penalty – The Referee, at his discretion, may assess a match penalty if, in his judgment, the player attempted to or deliberately injured his opponent by boarding.
Game Misconduct Penalty - When a major penalty is imposed under this rule for a foul resulting in an injury to the face or head of an opponent, a game misconduct shall be imposed.
Toronto was able to kill off the penalty, but still trail 2-0 in the second period.