The NHL has handed out suspensions to Tampa Bay forward Scott Sabourin for four games and defenceman J.J. Moser for two following their actions during the Lightning’s pre-season finale against the Panthers in Sunrise, Florida. In addition, the NHL fined the Lightning organization $100,000 and Lightning head coach Jon Cooper $25,000 without providing further details.
To bolster their roster for the game, the Lightning called up six players from their American Hockey League affiliate in Syracuse, New York. These call-ups collectively accumulated 77 penalty minutes, with five of them receiving either a match penalty, misconduct, or game misconduct during the game.
As per the NHL rulings issued on Monday, Sabourin will forfeit $16,145.84, equivalent to approximately $850 for every second he played in the penalty-filled match on Saturday. Moser, on the other hand, will lose $35,156.26.
The timing of Sabourin’s suspension remains unclear as he was sent back to Syracuse by the Lightning on Monday. Sabourin, who only participated in one NHL game last season, was handed a match penalty for going after Florida defenceman Aaron Ekblad just 19 seconds into Saturday’s game. This incident set the stage for a chaotic matchup that saw a total of 65 penalties called, 13 game misconducts, and 312 penalty minutes dished out.
Moser’s suspension stemmed from a boarding infraction on Panthers forward Jesper Boqvist during the same game, resulting in a major penalty and game misconduct for the defenceman. The game had so many penalties that the on-ice officials appeared to lose track of player ejections. Florida’s Niko Mikkola even unknowingly assisted on a goal that was later disallowed as he had been ejected earlier in the period.
Reflecting on the game, Florida forward Evan Rodrigues remarked that the situation had devolved into a nonsensical and unrecognizable form of hockey. Sabourin was among the six players called up by Tampa Bay for the match, following a previous pre-season game between the Lightning and Panthers that also saw a high number of penalties.
Despite Ekblad leaving Saturday’s game due to Sabourin’s hit, he was able to practice on Monday and is anticipated to be in the lineup as the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions kick off their season at home against Chicago on Tuesday.