Kristen ShiltonESPN NHL Reporter6:50 p.m. ET2 Minute Read
Toronto Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting has been suspended for three games for an illegal head check and interference with Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak. The discipline was announced Wednesday following a hearing for Bunting with the NHL’s Player Safety Division earlier in the day.
Bunting will sit out Games 2, 3 and 4 of Toronto’s first round playoff series against the Lightning. He’s eligible to return for Game 5 – if necessary – next Thursday. The Leafs are 1-0 behind Tampa Bay after losing 7-3 in Game 1 of the series on Tuesday.
The Bunting-Cernak incident happened late in the second half on Tuesday when Bunting threw an elbow to Cernak’s head. Cernak was on the ice for a few minutes and coaches tended to him before helping him into the Lightning locker room. Bunting was assessed a match penalty for the game and left the game.
“Firstly, the head is clearly the main point of contact,” the DoPS said in a video detailing their decision, “and it’s the head that absorbs almost all of the contact in this game. Second, the head contact in this game is avoidable. Bunting unnecessarily stretches his body up into Cernak’s head to deliver the check. It is also important to note that this is also a disability. Cernak is never in possession of the puck in this sequence and should therefore have no reason to expect to be checked.”
Cernak did not return for Game 1 and was ruled out for Game 2 on Thursday as well. The veteran defenseman plays a key role on the Tampa Bay blue line and is on the ice 19:14 a game in the regular season.
Lightning coach Jon Cooper said after Game 1 he has faith that the NHL will make the right decision.
“I’ll give you the line of business: the league will be looking at this. To me, it seems to tick a whole bunch of boxes [to warrant supplemental discipline]said Cooper.
Bunting led the Leafs in penalty minutes in the regular season (103) and had vowed to be more cautious in the playoffs so as not to disadvantage Toronto. Now the Leafs are having to adjust for a significant chunk of their postseason streak without a top-six winger.
At Wednesday’s practice — which Bunting attended — Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe put Calle Jarnkrok in Bunting’s former spot with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner.
On the Tampa Bay side, defenseman Victor Hedman — who left Game 1 after the first period with an unknown issue — may return for Game 2. Tanner Jeannot (right leg) also attended the team’s Wednesday practice and could return the following Thursday after a three-game absence.