The fallout from the wild Edmonton Oilers/Vancouver Canucks game on Saturday has arrived.
Oilers captain Connor McDavid, along with Canucks defenceman Tyler Myers, both received three-game suspensions for their cross-checks in the dying moments of the game.
The Oilers had their net pulled in an attempt to tie the game at three in the final minute. Conor Garland and McDavid got into a tussle on the ice, with Garland holding down his fellow Con(n)or for a lengthy period of time. When McDavid was freed, he cross-checked Garland in the face and was given a match penalty after a lengthy review.
During the same scrum, Evan Bouchard and Myers had their own incident away from the play. As the puck was being played, Myers hit Bouchard, with the Oiler defender slashing Myers, who returned a slash of his own. As Bouchard got closer to Myers, he cross-checked him in the face.
Say what you want about the league protecting their stars, as there should’ve been numerous penalties called on Garland, but you can’t cross-check someone in the face area. Notably, the two teams play again on Thursday, with both Myers and McDavid out for that game. Barring a meeting in the playoffs, McDavid won’t play the Canucks again until next season.
Noah Dobson out indefinitely with lower-body injury
The New York Islanders will be without one of their best defencemen, Noah Dobson, for the foreseeable future as he’s out with a lower-body injury with no timetable for a return.
Dobson appeared to suffer the injury in a collision with Columbus Blue Jackets forward Cole Sillinger on Monday in what was a 3-1 victory for the Islanders. This season, they have a 19-20-7 record with 45 points, seven back of the final Wild Card spot, and the second-fewest in the Eastern Conference.
Last season was a career-high for the Prince Edward Island native, as he scored 10 goals and 70 points in 79 games, helping the Islanders reach the postseason. However, it’s been tough sledding for the 25-year-old, as he has six goals and 24 points in 46 games in 2024-25.
Anaheim Ducks news
The Anaheim Ducks will gain a player in their lineup while also losing one. Trevor Zegras is set to return to action when the Ducks play the Florida Panthers on Tuesday, but Brock McGinn will be out of the lineup for a lengthy period of time.
Early in Zegras’ career, he looked as if he’d be the league’s next big superstar, scoring back-to-back 23-goal seasons in 2021-22 and 2022-23 with 61 and 65 points respectively. However, his production waned in 2023-24, scoring just six goals and 15 points in 31 games filled with injuries.
It’s been much of the same this season for the 23-year-old, as Zegras has four goals and 10 points in 24 games. The Bedford, New York native hasn’t played since Dec. 4 as he fell awkwardly in a game against the Vegas Golden Knights in the second period.
However, the Ducks also lost a player, as McGinn will be out of the team’s lineup for seven to nine months after undergoing ACL reconstruction surgery.
McGinn was off to his best season in a Ducks uniform, scoring four goals and eight points in 26 games, beating his previous high of three points in each of the last two seasons. However, McGinn has only played 65 games in a Ducks uniform since they acquired him before the 2022 trade deadline.
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