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Blackhawks prospect gets 13-game KHL ban after brutal headshot, punching official

One of the wildest scenes in hockey this season played out in the KHL this past week when Chicago Blackhawks prospect Artur Kayumov delivered a brutal headshot to an opponent, punched a referee, and then attempted to pump up the crowd as he was escorted off the ice.

All of it resulted in a 13-game suspension that the league handed down on Saturday.

The incident happened on Friday when Kayumov, currently playing for Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, hit Jokerit’s Jesper Jensen in the second period of Jokerit’s 3-0 win. He was assessed a five-minute major for the check, and two game misconducts (presumably for the hit and the punch to the referee).

You can see the entire sequence in the video above.

In 35 games this season the 20-year-old Kayumov has four goals and seven assists. What is especially odd about this is he only recorded two penalty minutes a year ago in 20 games, and before this incident had just 10 in 34 games this season.

The Blackhawks selected Kayumov with the pick they received from the Carolina Hurricanes in the Bryan Bickell, Teuvo Teravainen trade.

MORE: Your 2018-19 NHL on NBC TV schedule

Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.