Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid and Vancouver Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers will face NHL disciplinary hearings and probable bans following a pair of cross-checking penalties in the final seconds of the Canucks’ 3-2 victory on Saturday.
McDavid got tangled up with Vancouver’s Conor Garland and cross-checked him in the head, while Myers cross-checked Edmonton’s Evan Bouchard. Both were punished during the game.
After the game, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch defended McDavid, saying the play should have been declared dead much earlier since McDavid was held by Garland.
“Connor becomes frustrated, and he gets his stick up,” he told reporters. “He’s frustrated because we’re down by one goal and the best player in the league is being held
for fifteen seconds. It’s frustrating that this is allowed to happen.”
Several former NHL players supported McDavid as well. “This is hockey. This happens. It’s intense,” Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl told reporters. “We couldn’t acquire one, so we got into some fisticuffs. “Nothing major.”
Losing McDavid for any length of time would be a huge blow for Edmonton. The three-time Hart Trophy winner has 20 goals and 45 assists in 43 games this season, ranking fourth in the NHL with 65 points.
And he is generally available. Since 2016-17, McDavid has not missed more than seven games in a season. He has only been suspended once, for two games in 2019 after checking New York Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy in the head. And
Prior to Saturday’s 15 penalty minutes, he had only been punished 14 minutes all season.
Meyers has had two three-game suspensions in his NHL career and 54 penalty minutes this season. He has two goals and 11 assists for the Vancouver Canucks this season.
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