The NHL has fined the St. Louis Blues David Perron with $ 5,000 for crossing Colorado Avalanche striker Nazem Kadri, the league said Tuesday.
The incident took place in the second period of game 4. After Kadri hit Perron near the Blues bench, Pavel Buchnevich, another St. Louis player. Louis, made an exception to the exchange and crossed Kadri to the ice. As Kadri tried to get up, Perron lunged forward, sent another cross control to Kadri from behind, and proceeded to pile on top of him as the referees tried to break the scrum.
Buchnevich received a two-minute penalty for being run over, while Perron received a lesser penalty for cross-checking.
“We were just trying to create a spark,” Perron said when asked about his actions. “We need more fights in our group. We need more guys, I think, just to create a spark or whatever it takes during the game.”
The Avalanche could not take advantage of the next power play of 5 against 3, but Kadri scored his second of the match shortly after, making the score 4-1 unbeaten.
When he found the bottom of the net, Perron made another run for Kadri, this time with an elbow.
“You lose your temper and we’ll charge you,” the Avalanche star said after the game.
The altercation started by Perron marked a dangerous moment in a series that has increasingly revolved around Kadri, for his brilliance on the ice and for what he has endured off the track.
After colliding with Jordan Binnington in match 3 on Saturday, which injured the Blues goalkeeper and ruled him out for the series, someone threw a bottle of water at Kadri during a TV interview. Kadri has since said he thinks it was Binnington.
Since the collision and subsequent incident with the water bottle, Kadri has been subjected to numerous threats and cruel comments on social media.
The NHL said it was investigating threats made to Kadri on Monday and that St. Louis police were investigating. Louis used improved security procedures at the Kadri Hotel and Blues Stadium before Game 4.
On Tuesday, Kadri’s wife, Jazzy, took to Instagram to share screenshots of the racist messages he and his family had received over the past 48 hours, calling the message collection “just a small example” of the comments. who have suffered.
“A great game tonight, very proud of Nazem,” Jazzy wrote. “But I wanted to shed light on what the last 48 hours have been like for us as a family.”
“This is just a small example. There are many more. This behavior does not belong in sports or anywhere. If you do not condemn racism, then you will tolerate it,” he said.
Kadri himself has used his own platform to raise awareness.
“People need to be aware that these things are still happening and it hurts,” he said after Monday’s match.
The NHLPA also issued a statement on Tuesday condemning hate speech against Kadri and her family.
“The recent direct comments on Nazem Kadri online have no place in our society. Despite the deep-rooted interests of fans during such competitive playoffs, such a racist and hateful speech aimed at anyone is completely unacceptable. Nazem and the his family should never be subjected to the comments they have suffered this week, “the association wrote.