Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid will have a phone hearing with the NHL after being ejected in his team’s 3-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, Saturday.
McDavid cross-checked Conor Garland in the head after the Canucks forward tangled up the Oilers’ captain while Edmonton was trying to make a comeback attempt in the waning seconds of the game.
With Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner pulled for an extra attacker, McDavid collided with Garland at the top of the circles and the two fell over onto the ice. Garland prevented McDavid from getting up and rejoining the play, using his legs as a human paperclip. McDavid punched Garland in the head to get free, but was tackled back to the ice. Clearly done with the pest, the three-time MVP skated up to Garland and cross-checked him directly in the face. The two teams then came together pushing and shoving each other with 2.3 seconds remaining.
McDavid and Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers were both ejected from the game; McDavid received a match penalty for cross-checking Garland, while Myers received one of his own for cross-checking Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard in the face.
Every other player on the ice received a minor penalty.
Shortly after 11 am on Sunday, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced that McDavid and Myers would both have phone hearings with the league, meaning they could be suspended up to five games or less or receive a fine of more than $5,000.
Edmonton’s Connor McDavid will have a hearing for cross-checking Vancouver’s Conor Garland. Date and time TBD.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) January 19, 2025
Vancouver’s Tyler Myers will have a hearing for cross-checking Edmonton’s Evan Bouchard. Date and time TBD.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) January 19, 2025
If McDavid is suspended, he would miss the Edmonton Oilers’ next game on Tuesday against the Washington Capitals at Rogers Place. He was suspended once before after an illegal check to the head of the New York Islanders’ Nick Leddy in 2019.
