Drake Caggiula has been suspended for Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers against the Oilers.
The Blackhawks forward was discipline by the NHL Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head against Oilers forward Tyler Ennis in Chicago’s 6-4 win in Game 1 on Saturday at Rogers Place in Edmonton.
The incident occurred at 7:42 of the second period after Ennis sent the puck out of play and was penalized for delay of game. Caggiula’s right shoulder made contact with Ennis’ head, but Caggiula was not assessed a penalty. Ennis was able to finish the game.
Drake Caggiula’s hit against Tyler Ennis. #Blackhawks #Oilers pic.twitter.com/bWqoLf7Kq7
— Brandon Cain (@brandonmcain) August 1, 2020
“Kind of a bang-bang play,” Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton said Sunday. “He went hard and he definitely wasn’t trying to catch him in the head, but he did. [Now] someone’s going to go in and make a difference. I don’t know who it’s going to be yet, we haven’t decided.”
Colliton will have five forwards to chose from to replace Caggiula in the lineup: MacKenzie Entwistle, Brandon Hagel, Philipp Kurashev, John Quenneville and Dylan Sikura.
Caggiula had four hits and one blocked shot in 11:25 of ice time Saturday. It’s the first time he has been suspended in his four-year NHL career.
The Blackhawks look to take a commanding 2-0 series lead in the best-of-five series when they play the Oilers in Game 2 at 9:30 p.m. Monday.