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Should Andrew Ference be suspended for head shot on Leafs’ Grabovski?

Greg Wyshynski

Boston Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference has a 2 p.m. hearing with the Department of Player Safety on Thursday, regarding this hit on Mikhail Grabovski of the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1 last night:

Oof. That one looks rather obvious from a principle point of contact perspective. Hard to argue against targeting the head, too. The incident occurred at 13:03 of the first period.

Ference was mum about the incident after the game, but ESPN Boston reports that Randy Carlyle was willing to give Ference a pass for the play:

“To me, those are hits in the game,” Carlyle said. “Sometimes in the playoffs, you’re going to see physicality. It’ll be front and center. It’s a game that’s made to be physical. You’re allowed to hit people. To judge if it was offside, a bad hit or a belligerent hit, that’s not for me to judge. That’s for people in the league to make those determinations.”

There was no penalty and Grabovski remained in the game. Keep in mind Ference would be a repeat offender, having been suspended last season for three games in a boarding incident against Ryan McDonough of the Rangers in Jan. 2012.