Frank Nazar could get the book thrown at him for his hit on Bo Horvat

Chicago Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar could get the book tossed at him by the NHL on Friday. The league’s Department of Player Safety has scheduled a hearing to review the play that occurred in the final moments of Chicago’s 4-1 loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday night.

Islanders captain Bo Horvat chucked the puck down the ice, scoring an empty-netter. However Nazar clipped Horvat, hurtling him awkwardly, leading to quite the ruckus.

Nazar got a five-minute major and a match penalty for the hit on Horvat. Tyler Bertuzzi got a10-minute misconduct for fighting in the ensuing scrum. Horvat, meanwhile, appeared to be fine, as he too got into the action following the play.

Well, since Nazar will now have to answer to the league, the expectation is that the hit was deemed a headshot. And as we all know, headshots are a major no-no in the NHL.

The 22-year-old Nazar has played 127 games across parts of four seasons in the NHL and has never faced any disciplinary action. If he should face a suspension, it will likely be a lenient one, considering that there was no apparent injury or malicious intent in the play. In fact, you could chalk this one up to just bad timing. Had Horvat not been following through on the shot, Nazar would have caught him in the shoulder.

Alas, that was not the case, hence this discussion.

Frank Nazar’s match penalty makes all the difference

Since Nazar got a match penalty, the league will have to automatically look into the situation. And because that’s the case, something will have to come of this situation. The worst thing that could happen is a one-game suspension. It’s unlikely the league will suspend Nazar for more than that, unless it determines there was some sort of malice involved in the play.

But since Horvat did not suffer an injury, the league can use that to sort of talk down the final judgment.

Also, this is going to be a phone interview instead of an in-person interview. That severely lowers the possibility of a long suspension. With a phone interview, the limit to the suspension is five games.

Now, seeing as this is the first time that Nazar faces any sort of action like this, the league may opt to fine him. If he does, Frank Nazar could be looking at a hefty $10,000 fine, as there will be a hearing conducted to review the play.

So, there should be more information on the situation later on Friday. The league tends to move swiftly on these things. And if Nazar proves unlucky, the NHL might want to make an example of him.

The only thing Blackhawks fans can do now is wait to see what the NHL decides.

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