The Philadelphia Flyers will look to stave off elimination in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinals series with the New Jersey Devils, and they'll have to do without arguably their best player.
Flyers forward Claude Giroux has been suspended one game for his hit on Dainius Zubrus in Game 4, the league announced Monday.
Giroux hit Zubrus with a shoulder to the head near the boards in the second period of Sunday night's game. He was given a minor penalty for a check to the head on the play.
See the hit below.
Not only has Giroux evolved into one of the Flyers' top offensive weapons, he's become one of the game's best players.
The 24-year-old turned in an impressive 93-point campaign this season with 28 goals and 65 assists in just 77 games. He's also been a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs, chipping in with 8-9-17 totals in just 19 playoff games. He leads the league in all three of those offensive categories.
See NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan explain the decision to suspend Giroux in the video below from NHL.com.
