Ryan Hartman from the Minnesota Wild has received a ten-game suspension for a dangerous play where he struck an opponent’s head against the ice during a faceoff.
The NHL’s Department of Player Safety made the announcement on Monday evening following a virtual hearing held earlier in the day. Conducting the hearing via Zoom instead of a traditional phone call allowed the league to enforce a suspension of six games or more.
This marks the most extended suspension for on-ice misconduct since Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals was suspended for 20 games back in 2018 for an illegal hit to the head, which was later reduced to 14 games after an appeal.
Hartman has the option to appeal the decision, initially to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and, if he wishes, to a jointly appointed arbitrator by both the league and the players’ union. This incident represents Hartman’s fifth suspension and fourth since 2023.
According to the collective bargaining agreement, players who repeatedly breach league regulations are subject to increasingly severe penalties for subsequent violations.
The 30-year-old Hartman was ejected with a match penalty for roughing Ottawa’s Tim Stutzle during the latter part of the second period in their game on Saturday night.
Hartman claims he was merely trying to regain his balance and inadvertently used Stutzle for support, asserting that their fall was accidental. However, the Player Safety department disagreed, as conveyed in a video statement announcing the suspension. They emphasized, “With Stutzle bent low and focused on winning the draw, Hartman chooses to take advantage of a vulnerable player in an unacceptable manner. Hartman intentionally uses his forearm and body weight to forcefully drive Stutzle’s head into the ice, which renders this play inherently dangerous and beyond acceptable behavior.”
As a result of this suspension, Hartman will lose $487,805 in salary, marking the 11th instance of supplemental discipline he has faced over the course of 663 regular-season and playoff games since his league debut in 2015.
