The NHL’s Department of Player Safety has come down hard on Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson by handing out his second suspension of the preseason. Wilson will be suspended for four regular season games for boarding St. Louis Blues defenseman Samuel Blais. In their video explanation of the incident, the DoPS puts it this way:
It is important to note that based on Wilson’s angle of approach, at no point is he in a position to deliver a legal body check on Blais. While we understand Wilson’s explanation that he attempted to maneuver around Blais in a way that would enable him to deliver a shoulder-to-shoulder check, he is unsuccessful in this attempt.
The onus is on Wilson to deliver this hit in a legal fashion, minimize the force of the hit, or avoid this hit completely. Instead, having seen nothing but Blais’ numbers for some time, he drives forcefully through Blais’ upper back, driving him forcefully into the boards.
Wilson was suspended on September 23rd for two games for a hit he delivered against St. Louis forward Robert Thomas. Because of the recency of his suspension, he was seen as a repeat offender and thus given a harsher penalty than the previous discipline. Should Wilson get into trouble again the penalties will only increase.
The 23-year old forward spoke to Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press earlier today, saying that though physical play is part of his game, he has to “play within the rules.” Because he didn’t, he’ll be out until Friday October 13th when the Capitals take on the New Jersey Devils.