Montreal Canadiens forward Andrew Shaw will not be suspended for his hit on Adam McQuaid on Thursday night.
During the second period of last night’s game between the Habs and Blue Jackets, Shaw was trying to get back on-side during one of his team’s power plays when he collided with McQuaid near the Columbus blue line.
McQuaid stayed down on his back for a few seconds before he managed to skate off on his own. He did not return to the game.
After the game, Jackets head coach John Tortorella mentioned that he thought the hit was “ridiculously suspendable”. But the league didn’t see it that, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. So Shaw won’t face any supplemental discipline for the hit.
It’s hard to determine whether or not Shaw’s hit was intentional because he was trying to get on the other side of the blue line. On the other hand, he had his head up the whole time, so it’s difficult to imagine that he never saw his opponent in his path.
Shaw’s been a huge part of the Canadiens’ recent success, so the fact that they’ll have him for their last four games of the season is good news for their slim playoff hopes. The 27-year-old has 18 goals and a career-high 43 points in only 59 games this season.
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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.