Skip to main content

Blue Jackets' Prout suspended 1 game for sucker punch

  • Author:
  • Publish date:

NEW YORK (AP) The NHL has suspended Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dalton Prout one game for sucker punching Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov during a scuffle in Sunday's game.

Prout approached Kucherov while he was engaged with another player and delivered a blindside punch with his right gloved hand to his head. Kucherov left the game for precautionary reasons but did not suffer an apparent injury.

Prout has no fines or suspensions on his record through 197 NHL games. The league's department of player safety says it understands his argument that he was defending a teammate but added that ''this is not an acceptable method of doing so.''

Prout will miss the Blue Jackets' game Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings and forfeit $5,780 as a result of the suspension.

© 2024 ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ABG-SI LLC. - All Rights Reserved. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. All advice, including picks and predictions, is based on individual commentators’ opinions and not that of Minute Media or its related brands. All picks and predictions are suggestions only. No one should expect to make money from the picks and predictions discussed on this website. For more information, please read our Legal Disclaimer. Gambling content intended for 21+. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.