kadri

Nazem Kadri has been suspended for the remainder of the Eastern Conference First Round by the NHL Department of Player Safety.

The Toronto Maple Leafs center was disciplined Monday for cross-checking Boston Bruins forward Jake DeBrusk with 5:57 remaining in the third period of Game 2 on Saturday.

Kadri banned rest of First Round for cross-checking

Kadri received a major penalty for cross-checking and a game misconduct. DeBrusk sustained an upper-body injury but will play Game 3 at Toronto on Monday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVAS, NESN).
"We need other people to step up depending on who's playing center if he's not here," Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews said before the suspension was announced. "We've lost him before. We feel like depth on this team is something we have and we can take advantage of. We just need a guy to step in and play center. Then obviously we start from there."
The best-of-7 series is tied 1-1.
Kadri is eligible to return at some point during the second round if the Maple Leafs advance. He has been suspended four times in his NHL career, including three games for boarding Bruins forward Tommy Wingels in Game 1 of the 2018 first round. Boston won the series in seven games.
"We've just got to make sure we're in control of ourselves and doing things right," Toronto coach Mike Babcock said. "That's the key to success. … There's no sense getting involved in things that aren't going to help us be successful.
"… I think the edge for everybody is a little bit different, to be honest with you. Obviously, any time you put yourself in a situation where someone else gets to decide your future, it's probably not a good thing in anything you do in life."