Gillies Slapped with NHL ban

Gillies Slapped with NHL ban

The NHL came down hard late Saturday night on two Islanders deemed to be instigators in Friday's fight-filled 9-3 pummeling of the Penguins.

Trevor Gillies earned a nine-game suspension for an elbow to Eric Tangradi's head during a third-period melee, and Matt Martin was slapped with a four-game ban for ambushing Pittsburgh's Max Talbot from behind in the neutral zone to ignite the first scrum in the second period.

Gillies continued punching Tangradi after drilling him with his elbow, and then he appeared to taunt the Pens rookie as Tangradi, whom the Pens claim suffered a concussion, lay prone on the ice. Martin also was suspended two games in December for charging Phoenix forward Vernon Fiddler.

"The actions by Gillies and Martin were deliberate attempts to injure by delivering blows to the head of players who were unsuspecting and unable to defend themselves," said NHL VP Colin Campbell. "The message should be clear to all players: targeting the head of an opponent by whatever means will be dealt with by suspension."

The Islanders also were fined $100,000 because they "must bear some responsibility for their failure to control their players," Campbell added.

Martin, Gillies and Zenon Konopka - but not Bridgeport brawler Micheal Haley - took part in face-to-face hearings with Campbell and his Toronto-based crew after the Isles arrived in Buffalo late in the afternoon. GM Garth Snow also made the trip and sat in on the hearings, along with interim coach Jack Capuano.

A source confirmed that Haley wasn't required to meet personally with league officials. The Isles believed that three fighting majors, an instigator penalty and a double-game misconduct might be counted as "time-served" discipline against the instant Coliseum cult hero.

Haley, who netted his first NHL goal during the rout, had been up earlier Friday from AHL Bridgeport, where he is the team leader this season in both goals and penalty minutes. During the fracas ignited by Gillies, Haley fought both Talbot and goalie Brent Johnson at different ends of the ice.

Pittsburgh's Eric Godard also received an automatic 10-game suspension for leaving the Pens' bench when Haley skated the length of the ice to fight Johnson.

Pittsburgh's backup goalie gave up seven of the Isles' nine goals nine days after knocking out Rick DiPietro with one punch in the previous meeting between the two teams. In the Feb. 2 game, Talbot had incensed the Islanders over a blind-side hit on Blake Comeau, who remains out indefinitely with a concussion.

Konopka, who received only a roughing penalty and a 10-minute misconduct late in the game, joined Martin and Gillies at the hearings. The NHL reportedly reviewed tape to determine whether Konopka left the Isles' bench on a legal line change to start an altercation.

There were 346 combined penalty minutes assessed in the game - including 183 for the Islanders - with both figures setting franchise records.
Read More: Nydailynews

Penguins Re-Acquire Forward Alexei Kovalev

Penguins Re-Acquire Forward Alexei Kovalev

Penguins Re-Acquire Forward Alexei Kovalev

  

The Penguins acquired Kovalev in a trade with the New York Rangers in 1998, with Petr Nedved being the principle piece traded the other way. From then until 2003 Kovalev skated 345 games with Pittsburgh, putting up 347 points (149 goals, 198 assists). In 2003, with the team plunging into economic turmoil, the Pens had to trade Kovalev back to the Rangers, with this time the principle piece being $5 million dollars coming back to Pittsburgh.

Since leaving Pittsburgh, Kovalev's reputation has taken several hits. New York traded him to Montreal in '04, tired of his inconsistent play. His time in Montreal would be a roller coaster of good times (like when he scored 84 points in '07-08) and bad points, again plagued by a lack of team mentality and run-ins with the Montreal media. Then Kovalev jumped ship to Ottawa in the summer of '09, where he was mostly a bust.

Penguins Re-Acquire Forward Alexei Kovalev

This is the final year of his $5 million contract, and ironically, Pittsburgh is now one of the few contending teams that can afford him under the salary cap and was obviously willing to have him.
To acquire Kovalev at a pittance of a seventh round pick shows there was no market for him, no other bidders. Ottawa was happy just to get something for him and clear him off the books as they move to rebuild.
What does it mean for Pittsburgh? We told you here it wasn't crazy for the Pens to consider it, Kovalev is one of the few vets with skill that wouldn't cost a heavy price on the trade market.
Will he fit the Penguins style? Pittsburgh wingers are notorious for being low on skill and high on work ethic/positioning and "buying in" to the team concept. Alexei Kovalev is a polar opposite. No one knows if he will fit on this team, but even if it doesn't work, surely he'll be benched much like Alexei Ponikarovsky, Miroslav Satan and Petr Sykora have been in recent years. That didn't hurt team morale or cause any problems and neither will this move.
Acquiring Alex Kovalev for a 7th round pick is a low-to-no risk move with a potentially nice return. He's not a 80-90 point guy anymore, but he can add some desperately needed skill, especially when you look at who the team has had to resort to playing on the power play lately.
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