Boston Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy kicked off Washington capitals Tom Wilson in what he called “a predatory hit” for defender Brandon Carlo in Friday night’s game at TD Garden.
Carlo fell after Wilson put his head in the corner behind the Boston net, crushing the defender’s head into the glass with 90 seconds left for the first period. Carlo absorbed a cross control of Jakub Vrana as he walked towards the ice and stayed there for a few minutes.
Cassidy said Carlo left the arena in an ambulance and went to a hospital, but could not confirm that he suffered a concussion.
“It clearly seemed to me that he had it in his head. A helpless player, once a predator of a player who had done it before,” Cassidy said of Wilson. “I don’t understand why there was no penalty on the ice. They piled up, but I didn’t get an explanation for why.”
During his eight-year career in the capitals, Wilson has been one of the most penalized and suspended players in the NHL. He is the 10th of the active players for penalty minutes, following only those who have been in the league five or more years longer than him.
He was not available for comment after the match.
The music fell silent in the empty sand after Carlo was injured and heard on the Bruins bench picking up Wilson. When Carlo finally got to his skates, the only noise was that his teammates hit the sticks against the boards.
No sentence was called.
When the teams came out in the second period, Bruins center Patrice Bergeron skated Wilson and talked to him as he stretched. Capitals star Alex Ovechkin skated to control the situation, as did an officer.
Players began pushing each other after the next whistle, and Capitals defender Brenden Dillon was sent off for a transparent make-up call. With about six minutes to go, Boston’s Jarred Tinordi and Wilson dropped their gloves.
“Sometimes when these things happen and there are no calls, the players solve it on the ice in their own way, and we felt like we pulled back, we did what we could do, and we won the hockey game, and we tried to let this particular The player knows that was not necessary, “Cassidy said.
He added: “I guess the National Hockey League will watch it.”
The Bruins responded to Wilson’s success with a second three-goal period and faced another in the third to win 5-1.
“Put the fight aside, the boys came out with four goals [in a row] there, ”said Tinordi, who played only in his second game with the Bruins, as they demanded his resignations from Nashville.
“How close this group is, I’m not surprised to see the boys respond in an important way after one of our boys falls. You can’t have guys taking liberties with our players.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.