Pittsburgh Penguins forward Bryan Rust has been suspended three games for an illegal check to the head of Vancouver Canucks winger Brock Boeser, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced Tuesday.
The incident occurred in the dying seconds of the Penguins' 3-2 win over the Canucks on Sunday when Vancouver was seeking the tying goal. Boeser was going for a loose puck in front of the Penguins' net when Rust skated by him and clipped his head with his elbow.
Boeser was injured on the play and was doubled over while trying to get back to the Vancouver bench. He was placed on injured reserve Monday with the team stating Tuesday he is in concussion protocol.
While the hit drew the ire of the Canucks post-game, Penguins head coach Dan Muse was unhappy with the suspension length announced Tuesday.
"I think three games is a lot. I don't agree with it. As an organization, we don't agree with it," Muse said, per the team's website. "They have a tough job, in the league, in terms of looking at these things. Bryan Rustis a guywhere you know what you're going to get from him every night. He's a guy that works his [butt] off every day. He's a guy that's heart and soul. One thing he's not is a dirty player. He's going to do everything he can to help the team win. I mean, I've coached against this guy. He's been in the league for 12 years, like, 750-plus games. You see his track record. He's a guy who works, but he also plays the game the right way, and he plays it clean.
"And so, based on that track record, based on the player, who he is, what he's shown for a very long time in this league - yeah, I disagree with it. And again, the league's got a tough job. But in terms of the play, it's the end of the game. He's doing everything he can to just get back to the net front and not allow another shot on net in the closing seconds. Kind of the way he comes in there, he's trying to get on the defensive side. When you look at the video, too, there's a lot of things happening there. And so, there's the visual of it that you see, but there's also, I think, the intent and how all those things unfolded. But, now it's going to be an opportunity for guys to step up in his absence while he's out. Obviously, Rusty is a guy who plays just about every role you can imagine on this hockey team, and does it very well. And so now, it's going to be an opportunity for other guys there to come in and to get an opportunity to fill that hole while he's gone."
"I didn't know what happened. Just watched the replay above... I think it's a pretty dirty play, to be honest with you. But no one on the ice seemed to see it as well," Canucks forward Jake DeBrusk said postgame.
Rust was handed a two-minute penalty for an illegal check to the head with no time left on the clock.
The 5-foot-11 winger is third in Penguins scoring with 18 goals and 39 points in 47 games this season.
Pittsburgh sits second in the Metropolitan Division with a 26-14-11 record and are six points behind the Carolina Hurricanes for top spot and two points ahead of the New York Islanders.
The Penguins begin a three-game homestand Thursday against the Chicago Blackhawks, followed by the New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators on Saturday and Monday, respectively.
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