TAMPA, Fla. — Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev was suspended two games Friday for his illegal hit to the head of Toronto’s Mitch Marner in the first period of Thursday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Maple Leafs.
Sergachev received a two-game suspension without pay and was fined $48,000 — a total determined by the league’s CBA based on Sergachev’s salary — following a hearing with the NHL’s Player Safety Department.
He will miss the Lightning’s road game Saturday afternoon in Ottawa and Tuesday’s meeting against the Florida Panthers at Amalie Arena.
“It’s unfortunate news for him, for our team here, especially coming off a tough loss,” Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh said Friday. “We want to bounce back. He’s a big part of our team, a huge part of our team back there.
“He plays a ton of minutes, but we’ll treat it like it’s an injury at this point. At least you know when he’s back. A lot of times with injuries, you don’t know. It’ll be two games, but our focus is on trying to find a way to win a game (Saturday).”
On the play leading up to the hit, Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman lost the puck to Marner in the neutral zone and was called for hooking Marner as he closed in on the Tampa Bay net. After that call had been made, Sergachev threw his shoulder into the side of Marner’s head as he skated by, drawing an illegal check to the head penalty and raising the ire of the Leafs.
Angered by the hit, the Leafs immediately went after Sergachev following the whistle, a scrum led by captain John Tavares.
The two penalties created a two-minute, 5-on-3 power play in the final minutes of the period, but the Lightning killed off the penalties, taking a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
The absence of Sergachev, who ranks third on the Lightning with an average ice time of 22:12, will mean more playing time for other less-used defensemen like Jan Rutta (14:14), Andej Sustr (10:35) and Cal Foote (9:42 in two games since returning from injury). Hedman (25:24), McDonagh (22:47) and Erik Cernak (21:20) are all averaging more than 21 minutes and likely won’t be extended more, assistant coach Rob Zettler said.
“I kind of like those guys at those minutes,” Zettler said. “But maybe it gets to be a little bit of a stretch, and that’s asking a lot (to play them more).”
The Lightning also recalled defenseman Fredrik Claesson from AHL Syracuse on Friday for additional depth.
