Jul 7, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; Conor Geekie shakes palms with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman after being chosen because the quantity eleven general decide to the Arizona Coyotes within the first spherical of the 2022 NHL Draft at Bell Centre. Obligatory Credit score: Eric Bolte-Imagn Pictures Tampa Bay Lightning ahead Conor Geekie could have a listening to with the league on Thursday over his function in a battle throughout a preseason sport with the Florida Panthers.
In response to NHL Participant Security, the 2022 first-round decide (eleventh general) violated Rule 70.2 on Wednesday when he left the bench on a authorized line change “for the aim of beginning an altercation.”
The incident occurred within the second interval of the Panthers’ 2-1 time beyond regulation win after Florida prospect Josh Davies struck Lightning captain Victor Hedman with an open-ice hit. Tampa Bay star Nikita Kucherov retaliated towards Davies and acquired a two-minute roughing penalty.
After the subsequent line change, Geekie went after Davies and dragged him right into a battle. Geekie, 20, racked up 19 penalty minutes on the play: two for cross-checking, two for instigating, 5 for preventing and a 10-minute misconduct.
Geekie, who has but to make his NHL common season debut, instructed the Tampa Bay Occasions that he was sticking up for his teammates.
“It is a kind of issues, it does not matter if it is Heddy or whoever it’s,” Geekie mentioned. “I believe anybody will get hit like that, somebody’s obtained to step up. And I figured that I might be that man. It labored out, however anybody may do it. I am certain lots of guys had been considering the identical factor as me.”
The Lightning acquired Geekie from the Utah Hockey Membership within the June 29 commerce that despatched defenseman Mikhail Sergachev to Salt Lake Metropolis.
Geekie posted 99 factors (43 objectives, 56 assists) in 55 video games cut up between the WHL’s Swift Present Broncos and Wenatchee Wild in 2023-24.
–Area Degree Media