One day after the NHL Department of Player Safety suspended Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak two games for elbowing Rasmus Dahlin, the Sabres announced the sophomore defenseman will be out indefinitely with a concussion.
During Monday’s 5-2 Lightning win, Cernak, who is first-time offender, caught Dahlin with an elbow to the head that went unpenalized. In their suspension video, the DoPS said that Tampa argued that it was the Sabres defenseman’s glove that drove Cernak’s elbow into his face. That did not change any minds about what happened.
#TBlightning Erik Cernak said he didn’t mean to hurt Rasmus Dahlin, respects league’s decision. Texted Sabres defenseman yesterday and Dahlin responded that it’s all good. “It’s hockey. It happens,” Dahlin responded.
— Joe Smith (@JoeSmithNHL) November 27, 2019
This is the second injury sustained by a Sabres player due to the actions of a member of the Lightning. Earlier this month Vladimir Sobotka suffered a lower-body injury after a hit by Nikita Kucherov during one of their Global Series games in Sweden. Sobotka is out 4-6 weeks after knee surgery. Kucherov was not penalized or suspended for the hit.
Losing Dahlin is not what the Sabres need at the moment. Currently 2-8-2 in their last 12 games, they face the Flames Wednesday night and then have a weekend home-and-home with the Maple Leafs. Another strong early season start has once again developed into a free fall. It wasn’t long ago that they began the season with a 9-2-1 record. Injuries have hit the lineup hard with Kyle Okposo and Marcus Johansson among the names currently sidelined.
MORE: Cernak suspended two games
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Sean Leahy is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @Sean_Leahy.