It’s tough to say whether this was on purpose or not, and I have to believe that this was an accident. Moncton’s Ross Johnston and Halifax’s Brian Lovell got tangled up going into the boards and Lovell went down to the ice. Johnston’s stick got caught in the stanchion and as he was trying to yank it free, Lovell was getting up. The stick came free and Lovell got hit right in the jaw. As a player, Johnston has to be responsible for his stick at all times. He was yanking pretty hard to get his stick loose and while he knew Lovell was nearby, it’s not as though he knew when exactly his stick was going to come loose.
Johnston has been suspended indefinitely by the QMJHL and the play is going in front of a review board to see how long Johnston should be suspended for. There was no penalty called on the play, but league determined that this play needed to be reviewed and there will be a hearing since Moncton sent video of the incident to the league.
Here’s what Lovell’s jaw looked like yesterday:
[Deadspin]