Brandon Hagel Aaron Ekblad Jon Cooper Aleksander Barkov Florida Panthers Sports transactions Niko Mikkola Paul Maurice Athlete injuries NHL Zemgus Girgensons NHL hockey Sports
# Panthers' Ekblad suspended 2 games for elbowing Lightning's Brandon Hagel in the head

April 29th, 2025 11:09 PM

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NEW YORK (AP) — Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been suspended for two games for elbowing Lightning forward Brandon Hagel in the head midway through Game 4 of the Panthers' first-round series against Tampa Bay.

The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced its ruling after a phone hearing with Ekblad earlier Tuesday. He will be out for Game 5 and either Game 6 of this series or the Panthers' first game next round.

No penalty was called when Ekblad hit Hagel in the chin with his right elbow and forearm with just under nine minutes left in the second period on Monday night. Hagel left the ice and did not return, and Ekblad scored the first of two goals in 11 seconds late in the third to give the defending Stanley Cup champions a comeback victory and a 3-1 series lead.

Coach Jon Cooper said Hagel would not play in Game 5. Hagel was suspended for Game 3 for his late hit that knocked Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov out of Game 2.

Ekblad missed the first two games and the final 18 of the regular season after being suspended for violating the league and NHLPA's performance-enhancing drug policy. Florida got accustomed to playing without Ekblad.

"If it's the first time it happens, there's even questions from the coaching staff about what's the right adjustment to make in your lineup and how will that play out — there's a lot of unknown," coach Paul Maurice said. "Because we've been through it so much when Aaron's out we know what the D-pairs are — let's assume — if he's out of the lineup."

Another Panthers defenseman, Niko Mikkola, was fined $5,000 for boarding Tampa Bay's Zemgus Girgensons. Mikkola was given a five-minute major and ejected for the play early in the third period of Game 4.

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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl