Maxim Lapierre‘s dirty hit on San Jose Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle is going to result in him getting a call from the NHL’s Department of Player Safety very soon.
The Blues forward hit Boyle in the numbers despite having plenty of time to avoid a hit or make a legal play.
Instead, he used his forearm to drill the Sharks veteran into the boards, resulting in a scary collision that included his jaw hitting the dasher. Lapierre received a five-minute major penalty for checking from behind and was ejected from the game. You can bet that Lapierre will also be suspended by the NHL for this hit, but how many games he receives is the real question.
The hit also caused a brawl, with Lapierre, Ryan Reaves, Andrew Desjardins and Barret Jackman all receiving major penalties for fighting. Desjardins also received an instigator penalty.
Boyle laid on the ice for several minutes and had to leave the ice on a stretcher. According to Sharks radio play-by-play man Dan Rusanowsky, “Boyle is alert and responsive on the way to the hospital.”
Sharks center Logan Couture scored on the ensuing power play to give his team a 1-0 lead. Just a short time later, Joe Pavelski added to the Sharks’ lead with his own power-play goal.
Later in the first period, Blues forward Brenden Morrow was rammed into the boards by Sharks winger Brent Burns and left the ice in pain. No more fights erupted, and Burns was given a two-minute penalty for boarding. Watch Burns’ hit here.
Check out Lapierre’s hit on Boyle in the video below.
Thumbnail photo via @NBCBayArea
