The rivalry between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens was already among the fiercest in the NHL. But that enmity got much fiercer following Boston forward Milan Lucic’s hit on Montreal’s Jaroslav Spacek in Tuesday night’s Game 6 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series.
The big hit from Lucic came 4:37 into the second period when the Bruins cleared the puck out of their zone and Spacek went to play it near the boards. As Lucic approached, Spacek turned at the final moment as Lucic slammed into him from behind. Spacek slammed face-first into the glass, fell motionless to the ice and suffered a cut.
Lucic was assessed a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct, and Brian Gionta scored for the Habs on the ensuing power play to give them a 2-1 advantage. The Montreal lead held up, forcing a Game 7 on Wednesday in Boston.
The hit didn’t appear to be malicious, and Lucic clearly did not leave his feet.
But with the premium being placed around the league on policing illegal hits, it seems possible that Lucic could also miss the next game should the NHL execs see it differently.
Tricia Vessey Aki Ross Ashley Tappin Carmen Electra Amanda Marcum
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