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NHL suspends Seabrook three games for charging into Backes

Seabrook hit

Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook high and late hit on David Backes has cost his team dearly. Down 2-0 in the series, Chicago will have to fight its way back without his help after he was assessed a three-game suspension for his actions.

That’s on top of Seabrook’s check arguably costing Chicago Saturday’s game.

Chicago had a 3-2 lead at 15:09 of the third period when Seabrook was assessed a five-minute major. St. Louis forward Vladimir Tarasenko tied the game on the resulting power play en route to a 4-3 overtime win that put the Blues up 2-0 in the series.

The NHL determined that Seabrook had enough time to avoid the check after Backes skated by the puck, but instead he “delivered a violent blow that causes the defenseless Backes to crash dangerously into the boards.”

Seabrook hadn’t previously been fined or suspended, which presumably worked in his favor, but the NHL also factored in that Backes suffered an injury.

It remains to be seen whether Backes will be available for Game 3.

“I have no idea ... I have no idea right now,” Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said on Sunday, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I know one thing: he couldn’t play today.”

You can watch the suspension video below:

Related:

Seabrook: ‘I was just trying to make a play on Backes’

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