Montreal Canadiens rookie forward Juraj Slafkovsky was suspended Wednesday for two games by the NHL’s department of player safety for boarding Detroit Red Wings forward Matt Luff.
The incident occurred with just over five minutes remaining in the third period. As Luff attempted to play a bouncing puck in the neutral zone, he was hit in the back by Slafkovsky and fell face-first into the boards.
Luff was in distress on the ice after the hit and Slafkovsky was given a game misconduct for boarding.
Luff had surgery for an upper-body injury and is expected to be sidelined for the next 10 to 12 weeks, the Red wings announced.
Slafkovsky, the first-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, was playing in his 10th game of the season. He has three goals in those games.
The Canadiens play their next three games at home, including Wednesday night (7:30 ET / 4:30 PT) against the Vancouver Canucks on Sportsnet and SN NOW.