Capitals urge suspension for Letang

Kris Letang has been in the middle of most everything in this Penguins-Capitals Stanley Cup playoff series, but he might soon be completely out.

The NHL is expected to review his check on Washington's Marcus Johansson at 15:41 of the first period of the home team's 3-2 victory Monday night at Consol Energy Center, one that briefly sent Johansson to the locker room. Referees Francis Charron and Wes McCauley assessed an interference minor, but Johansson's head snapping back could prompt the league's Department of Player Safety to add supplemental discipline.

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Detailed video studies have timed Letang's hit at 0.6 seconds from the time Johansson moved the puck, so interference likely won't be a factor, as the league's standard for finishing a check is 0.8 seconds. Rather, the focus will be on whether the principal point of contact is Johansson's head, which would be suspendable, or the chest. Another issue could be Letang leaving his feet. Or that Johansson arrived low as he got tangled with Evgeni Malkin.

Here's one view of the collision:





CAPITALS: SAME AS ORPIK?

This happened, of course, in the immediate aftermath of Washington's Brooks Orpik getting a three-game league suspension for his Game 2 check on Olli Maatta. Two differences in the hits: Orpik's, which also had been deemed an interference minor by the referees, came at 0.8 seconds, so it was closer to being late. Also, it was established that Maatta's head was the principal point of contact.

Predictably, the sides were split afterward along party lines, with the Capitals being most vocal in expressing hope that Letang's punishment matches Orpik's.

“He’s vulnerable,” Washington coach Barry Trotz said. “Let the league handle it. I’d just get myself in trouble if I say anything more.”

Asked then to compare it to Orpik's hit, he replied, "We’ll let the league handle it, as I said. But they set a little bit of a standard, so we’ll see.”

Trotz's players weren't nearly as guarded:







Johansson, who had to clear the NHL's concussion protocol before returning, got his first look at the hit after the game, then emerged to speak with reporters.

“He obviously leaves his feet and hits me in the head," he said. "I mean, that’s the kind of play you want out of the league. It doesn’t look good.”

Johansson declined to answer if Letang should be suspended.

Trotz added, without being asked, that Johansson, even though he returned to finish Game 3, will still need to spend time with the Capitals' athletic trainers before Game 4 Thursday. The NHL takes into account the injury of the victim when assessing supplemental discipline.

LETANG: NO INTENT TO INJURE

Letang's defense was simply that the play developed quickly. He acknowledged seeing Johansson coming -- Johansson said he never saw Letang coming -- and that he went to hit him to keep him from going to the Penguins' net after he'd moved the puck.

"Things happen fast," Letang said. "I know he was down after the hit, but I'm glad he was OK. Finished the game. He was pretty physical with me afterward, so I'm glad he was OK. I had no intention of hurting him. It's just a step up."

Asked if he needed to step up in that situation and risk a penalty, given his importance to the Penguins, he replied: "Well, things happen fast in the game. I'm trying to make sure he doesn't go to the net after the play. It was a fast play."

Here's the full audio, as well as video:



Mike Sullivan's only response regarding Letang: "It was a bodycheck."

And those four words were delivered thusly:



If Letang is unavailable, the obvious lineup move would be to add Justin Schultz for his first action since Game 1 of the first round. Schultz and Derrick Pouliot were Sullivan's two choices to replace Maatta for this game, and he chose Pouliot.

But no one on the Pittsburgh side was pretending that making up for the absence of one of the league's top defenseman, who's been logging a half-hour per game in the playoffs, would be routine.

"You can try to do it by committee," Ian Cole said. "But you can’t really replace him."

THE PROCEDURE

The Department of Player Safety generally announces whether a player in a notable incident will have a hearing early the day after the game. From there, it renders a decision in the next few hours.