For Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Hartman, February may be over before it really begins. Hartman, who has been suspended four times since his NHL debut a decade ago, has been offered an in-person hearing by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety after his latest on-ice infraction, and he is likely facing a lengthy suspension.
Hartman received a five-minute major penalty and was ejected from the game at the end of the second period of Saturday’s 6-0 loss in Ottawa. When the puck hit the ice for a defensive zone faceoff, Hartman shoved Senators center Tim Stutzle head-first into the ice, knocking Stutzle’s helmet off in the process.
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Earlier in the second period, Hartman and Stutzle got into a fracas and each was assessed a roughing penalty, but Hartman was also assessed a two-minute embellishment penalty — much to the visible consternation of Hartman and Wild coach John Hynes.
The Senators, who led 3-0 when the penalty was called, scored three more on the ensuing extended power play to blow the game open. Hynes was tight-lipped about the penalty, and most other things, following the lopsided loss, which snapped a three-game Minnesota winning streak.
“I think that situation is what it is,” Hynes said, offering little else when pressed for his opinion on the penalty. “I don’t want to get into any … the game was the game. The situation was the situation. That’s not the crux of what happened in the game.”
The date and time of Hartman’s hearing have yet to be determined, but per NHL standards, he could be assessed a six-game suspension due to his status as a repeat offender. With the two-week break for the 4 Nations Face-Off upcoming, that would mean Hartman would be ineligible to return to the Wild lineup until their Feb. 28 road game in Colorado.
Now in his sixth season with the Wild, Hartman, 30, has seven goals and 10 assists in 48 games for Minnesota this season, along with 60 minutes in penalties.
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