Watch: Oilers Defenseman Suffers Cross-Check to the Throat, Leaving NHL Player Safety Committee With a Question

An intense NHL game occurred between the Edmonton Oilers and the Winnipeg Jets on Friday night. There were a lot of orange-clad fans at the game at Edmonton’s Rogers Place. The game was dominated by the home side until the beginning of the third period when the Jets made a determined effort to get back into the contest. Jets forward Saku Maenalanen tapped Oilers defender Philip Broberg on the neck during the heat of the battle.

The Twitter account Lights Out Hockey shared a video of the incident. This event occurred in the third period of a game won by the Edmonton Oilers, despite a valiant effort by the Winnipeg Jets to fight back from a three-goal deficit. Saku Maenalanen, a forward for the Jets, made a valiant effort to score a goal in the game’s last seconds. On the other hand, when the forward from the Jets encountered the defender from the Oilers, Philip Broberg, it was obvious that the forward had punched the defenseman.

How did this incident happen?

Two games were scheduled to be played between the Oilers and the Jets this weekend. Edmonton’s Rogers Arena hosted the first game, while Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre hosted the second. The two Canadian teams showed they were ready for a tough fight by playing evenly competitive games. Unfortunately for the Oilers’s defenseman, this incident occurred in the first game at Rogers Arena. The defender was stationed in his normal spot around the Oilers’s net, guarded by Jack Campbell. But he was caught off guard when the Jets forward tapped him on the neck.

Jets center David Gustafsson had possession of the puck and was being chased by Oilers forward Ryan McLeod. Oilers forward Warren Foegele joined the puck chase, heading right for the Jets center. But at that time, Jets winger Saku Maenalanen skated up to the Oilers’ goal and cross-checked Philip Broberg in the neck.

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Broberg fell down on the ice right away, and his teammates near the goal crowded around Maenalanen to aid him. There were barely 25 seconds left in the game, so play continued as normal, but the NHL referees would not take this cross-check lying down.

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What do you think of this cross-check? Do you think the officials would suspend the Jets forward because of this? For more updates on this incident, stay tuned.