The NHLPA and the Calgary Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson are appealing Andersson’s four-game charging suspension for his hit on Patrik Laine.
Sportsnet’s Eric Francis initially reported and Elliotte Friedman confirmed the news.
Because the suspension is lower than six games and did not feature an in-person hearing, the appeal will be heard by commissioner Gary Bettman and he will have the final say.
Andersson was assessed a match penalty after he caught Laine up high with a hit in the dying seconds of Friday’s game as the Blue Jackets forward tried to score on an empty net. Laine was slow to get up.
In a video announcing the suspension, the NHL said the angle Andersson took to hit Laine, as well as the fact that the hit was late in a game that was out of reach, contributed to the decision to suspend the defenceman four games.
“We have our full support with him,” Flames general manager Craig Conroy told Sportsnet’s Ryan Leslie on Sunday. “Right now, obviously, we’re hoping it goes in a different direction.”
After the game, which Columbus won 3-1, Blue Jackets head coach Pascal Vincent said the hit from Andersson was definitely late and should hopefully lead to future discipline from the league.
Laine did not travel with the team and was ruled for Saturday’s game against the Minnesota Wild with an upper-body injury. The team announced he will continue to be evaluated and is considered day-to-day.
“I see a hit to the head and (Andersson) lifting his feet,” Vincent said after the game. “I saw the replay. That’s illegal in my book. So we’ll let the NHL deal with it.”
It is rare to see an NHL player appeal a suspension in part because of how long the process takes. Jason Spezza appealed a six-game suspension handed down to him back on Dec. 7, 2021, getting it reduced to four games 10 days later by Bettman.
Andersson served the first game of his suspension on Sunday against the Detroit Red Wings. If the appeal does not lead to a reduction, Andersson will the final game of his suspension next Saturday when his Flames play outdoors at Commonwealth Stadium against the Oilers in the Heritage Classic.
