Marcus Foligno of the Wild will have a hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety for kneeing Jets forward Adam Lowry Tuesday night.
Midway through the third period of Winnipeg’s 2-0 win, temperatures rose and several skirmishes stopped play along the benches. Foligno and Lowry eventually paired up for the second time in the game. The two ended up on the ice and as they are being separated by the officials Foligno kneed Lowry.
Both were given fighting majors, but Foligno was also tagged with an unsportsmanlike minor.
“Just trying to stick up for my teammates and try to finish an opponent. That’s it,” Foligno said afterward. “Just getting ticked off with just some things that those guys do from time to time, but just heat of the battle.”
Foligno, however, denied that he kneed Lowry after their scrap.
“I saw them complaining about maybe I got my leg in there or something, but that was me just kinda ticked off and trying to get at him,” he said. “There was no intent to not throw with your fist or use another body part.”
The Wild are off until a home date on Saturday with the Hurricanes.
————
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.