Artem Zub might be in some hot water after his nasty elbow to John Tavares and may need to answer to the Department of Player Safety very soon.
Although the Ottawa Senators avoided the sweep at home with a 4-3 OT victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs, they might not be out of trouble just yet, at least when it comes to avoiding some potential punishment.
During the OT period, defenseman Artem Zub ended up essentially elbowing John Tavares in the face, knocking him down and clearly shaking him up. No call was made on the play, and the Senators escaped unscathed while Tavares ended up going to the locker room for half of the extra period.
Leafs fans were outraged and for good reason too, although Zub was playing hard, there was no real need to throw such a nasty elbow, and the NHL might have something to say about it; at least they should take a hard look.
Fans Want Zub Punished; Deserves Second Look By NHL
Many are calling not only for the league to take a look at things, but are also calling out certain personalities for trying to dismiss the dirty hit as a ‘hockey play’.
Thankfully Tavares returned to the game and there was nothing serious afoot when it came to a potential injury, and while Zub might want to play hard, there are other ways to go about it.
This could potentially end up hurting the Senators going into Game 5, as he is one of Ottawa’s better defenders and if he ends up receiving any type of punishment that will see him miss a game, will most likely see the playoff debut of Carter Yakemchuk who the team recently called up for insurance.
Frustrations may have boiled over for Zub and the normally less aggressive defender felt like he needed to set the tone, but it might cost him.
It’s the second time the Senators may face punishment, as the team got dinged $25k for Nick Cousins’ actions during Game 3’s pre-game warmups, and it shows a lack of awareness and is a testament to how Travis Green decides to police his team.
But for now, Zub has gotten away with nailing Tavares in the head, but if the NHL does its job, he won’t be able to make a difference come Game 5.