Colorado Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri, who left Saturday’s Game 3 against the Edmonton Oilers after just 66 seconds due to a penalized hit from Evander Kane, is not expected back in the Western Conference finals series.
Kadri, who entered Saturday having collected six goals and eight assists in 12 playoff outings, was heading to the corner to retrieve a puck when Kane cross-checked him in the back and sent him crashing into the boards.
Kadri was on the ice for a lengthy time before heading to the dressing room. He was reportedly seen leaving Rogers Place in Edmonton with an arm in a cast.
Kane was assessed a five-minute major penalty for boarding, but not a game misconduct.
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar called the hit “the most dangerous play in hockey.”
Colorado went on to a 4-2 win to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the series. Game 4 will be Monday, also in Edmonton.
Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog, when asked whether he expected Kane to be disciplined for the hit, said, “You’re taught from a young age that you don’t do that, and especially in that distance from the boards. … I’m sure they’ll take a look at it.”
Kane said he “was just coming in on the backcheck. The puck went wide, dribbled into the corner. I know he likes to reverse hit, and I was just trying to get a bump on him. That’s really all I did.”
The Oilers had to make a roster switch after forward Kailer Yamamoto was injured by a hard check from Landeskog in Colorado’s victory that gave them a 2-0 edge in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals. Edmonton dressed Brad Malone in his place.
–Field Level Media
