Minnesota Wild captain Jared Spurgeon was fined $5,000 after cross-checking St. Louis Blues forward c Monday in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.
Spurgeon, quite frankly, was lucky enough to avoid further discipline and spoke to the media on Tuesday, where he reflected on the unusual play.
“I’m just a little frustrated. Just happy that he’s okay. It’s something I don’t usually do. He’s not the player I am. Not very happy with me, it’s to say the least,” Spurgeon said via Danish Mizutani of Pioneer press.
St. Louis beat Minnesota 4-0 and that obviously had an impact on Spurgeon. In the final two minutes of the game, Spurgeon cross-checked Buchnevich on the back of his leg after the two got tangled as they battled for a loose puck.
Here is the piece in question, and we let you be the judge:
Perhaps Spurgeon’s solid reputation in league circles was factored in. The 32-year-old is rarely penalized and is known for his courteous approach to the game. This is the first punishment of any kind in his 12-year career.
“We were frustrated last night. We took bad penalties. It’s a bad penalty. He knows that,” Wild head coach Dean Evason said Tuesday. “When Jared Spurgeon does something like that, it means your group is a bit off. So they’ll hold him back and he’ll be the guy to do it.
The NHL revamped its playoff format in 2013-14 in an effort to evoke divisional rivalries between the second and third seeded teams, possibly to expand the marketability of the game in certain areas of the United States. . There’s no need to have artificial hostility, however, when you have plays like Spurgeon’s during Game 1.
Game 2 of what is expected to be a hotly contested series between the Blues and the Wild takes place on Wednesday.
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