Commissioner Gary Bettman has affirmed the six-game suspension handed to Detroit Red Wings forward David Perron. Perron received the suspension on December 11 for a cross-check to the head of Ottawa Senators defenseman Artem Zub during their game in Detroit. The league interpreted the hit as a retaliatory action following Mathieu Joseph and Parker Kelly’s hits on Detroit’s Dylan Larkin, rendering him unconscious on the ice. Perron’s appeal was heard by Bettman on Tuesday, and the NHL determined that the cross-check was an “intentional strike with the stick made with the purpose of exacting retribution on an opponent,” rather than a legitimate hockey play.
Perron received a match penalty for the incident at 13:50 of the first period. In contrast, Joseph and Kelly were assessed minor penalties, and Zub continued playing. Larkin’s return timeline remains uncertain. Perron’s agent, Allan Walsh, criticized the suspension as a “farce,” emphasizing his client’s otherwise clean track record. Perron, who has played 1,081 career games without a suspension, is set to return in the game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday. At 35 years old, this season marks his 17th in the league, and he has accumulated 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 26 games.
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