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IIHF suspends Justin Abdelkader for one game at World Championship

Justin Abdelkader, Reto Berra

Switzerland goaltender Reto Berra makes a save in front of USA forward Justin Abdelkader during the Group B preliminary round match between Switzerland and USA at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Minsk, Belarus, Saturday, May 10, 2014. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

AP

The IIHF decided to suspend Justin Abdelkader for one game at the 2014 World Hockey Championship for a knee-to-knee hit on Kazakhstan’s Konstantin Pushkaryovbegan.

Abdelkader (pictured on the left) won’t be able to play for the United States against Finland because of this bit of supplemental discipline.

Here’s a portion of the IIHF’s explanation for the suspension:

Based on all of the evidence presented, the Disciplinary Panel determined that Abdelkader had sufficient time to choose the manner in which he was going to check Pushkaryov and that at no point did Abdelkader make any attempt to play the puck. Pushkaryov turned to avoid the hit as he has a right to evade his opponent, so the responsibility lies with Abdelkader to take a different route to avoid the knee-to-knee contact

The Panel believes that Abdelkader’s actions were unintentional but his check caused a serious injury to Pushkaryov and for this he must be held accountable. Therefore the Panel determined that a one-game suspension would be appropriate.

The rugged Detroit Red Wings forward has two points and a -3 rating in five games during this tournament. The 27-year-old’s $1.8 million cap hit expires after the 2015-16 season.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins