Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand is no stranger to hearing from the NHL Department of Player Safety.
The 37-year-old left winger has seen his share of fines during his 18-year NHL career, so when he was punished by the league on Sunday for his actions in Saturday’s 3-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, it likely came as a surprise to no one.
“Florida’s Brad Marchand has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for unsportsmanlike conduct for his actions during yesterday’s game against Buffalo,” the DOPS announced on Sunday.
Marchand and Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin got into a heated altercation during Saturday’s contest.
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Seconds after Dahlin checked Marchand in the back along the boards, the two-time Stanley Cup champion retaliated, pouncing on top of the 25-year-old defender and firing off a punch to his ribs before being pulled off by Sabres center Tage Thompson.
Marchand took things a step further on his way to the penalty box, grabbing Dahlin’s helmet and ripping off the straps before chucking the helmet out onto the ice.
Though Dahlin wasn’t penalized for the incident, Marchand was hit with a minor penalty for interference and another minor for roughing.
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Despite what some called “childish behavior,” Dahlin didn’t seem to take offense to Marchand’s antics after the game.
“He’s a competitor,” Dahlin told reporters, vis MassLive. “I’ve probably done something like that in the past, too. Stuff happens out there.”
Saturday’s loss dropped the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers to 3-4, and marked their fourth straight loss. Marchand leads the team in both goals (three) and points (six) through seven games.
Florida is down three key players, including arguably two of its best in captain Aleksander Barkov, who’s expected to miss the entire regular season after tearing his ACL and MCL, and star forward Matthew Tkachuk, who is expected to be out until at least mid-December while he recovers from a torn adductor injury and sports hernia.
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