The Department of Player Safety suspended Kurtis MacDermid two games for his hit on Ivan Provorov. MacDermid delivered the check on Dec. 31, when his Los Angeles Kings beat Provorov’s Philadelphia Flyers 5-3.
Officials didn’t penalize MacDermid for the hit. Provorov played in the Flyers’ latest game, a 5-4 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday. In fact, Provorov logged hefty ice time (26:39) and generated one assist.
The NHL shared video of the hit, along with an explanation for the two-game suspension:
The Department of Player Safety stated that Provorov’s head was the main point of contact, and that such head contact was avoidable.
The Kings play their next two games at home (vs. Nashville on Saturday, and Columbus on Monday). MacDermid can return to the Kings during a Jan. 8 home game against the Stars.
MacDermid managed to play in 26 games so far for the Kings, but this isn’t much of a loss, considering his modest 13:08 TOI average. The most important thing is that Provorov seems OK, as he’s crucial to the Flyers’ success, and is enjoying a redemptive 2019-20 season.
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.