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Flames forward John Beecher to have hearing with Player Safety following incident with Michael McCarron
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Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Ryan Pike
Jan 4, 2026, 14:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 4, 2026, 16:51 EST
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On Saturday night, Calgary Flames forward John Beecher received a roughing minor penalty and a 10-minute misconduct for a skirmish with Nashville Predators forward Michael McCarron.
On Sunday morning, the National Hockey League’s Department of Player Safety announced that Beecher will have a hearing with them regarding the incident. Hearings with Player Safety usually result in supplemental discipline towards a player – typically a suspension, but sometimes only a fine depending on the circumstances.
The incident occurred 13:15 into the first period, following a fight between Flames forward Ryan Lomberg and Predators forward Cole Smith. After the fight, McCarron had words for the Flames bench, which was followed by a bit of a skirmish in front of the bench involving several players.
During the skirmish, McCarron dropped his gloves and threw a few punches at Beecher. The officials got involved and tried to calm things down by tying everyone up… and Beecher threw a punch at McCarron, who was actively being restrained by the officials, that caught McCarron right on the chin and dropped him. (Both players received minors for roughing and misconducts.)
When Beecher returned to the game after serving his penalties, he fought Predators defender Nicolas Hague. It didn’t go great for him, and Beecher hung on for dear life and ended up suffering an upper body injury in the fracas. He left the game and didn’t return, and the Flames played the balance of the hockey game with 11 forwards. They lost to Nashville by a 4-3 score.
Flames head coach Ryan Huska had no updates on Beecher’s status both during Saturday’s post-game press conference or after Sunday’s optional practice. Beecher did not skate on Sunday. The Flames currently are carrying 13 forwards, so if Beecher is unavailable for Monday’s game against Seattle due to injury or suspension (or both), Justin Kirkland would likely slot into the fourth line.
This is Beecher’s first brush with Player Safety, as he has yet to be fined or suspended so far in his NHL career. We wouldn’t expect that any injury suffered by Beecher in the game would have any impact on how much supplemental discipline he receives for the incident.
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