Shane Doan’s blatant elbow to Jamie Benn’s head sparks melee; suspension next? (VIDEO)

At 5:54 of the second period on Tuesday night, Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars dug the puck out from a scrum behind the net and tried to play it around Shane Doan. The Phoenix Coyotes captain reacted by lifting his right arm, targeting Benn's jaw and connecting, sending the Stars forward down to the ice.

That sparked a bit of chaos between the two division rivals:

Doan was given a fighting major for his bout with Brenden Morrow (who also received five minutes), as well as a two-minute elbowing minor for the hit on Benn.

The other penalties for the Coyotes: Raffi Torres with roughing and charging minors and a 10-minute misconduct; and Rusty Klesla with a roughing minor and a 10-minute misconduct.

The other penalties for the Stars: Steve Ott with roughing and unsportsmanlike conduct minors, and a 10-minute misconduct; and Trevor Daley with a roughing minor and a 10-minute misconduct.

As for Doan, he's in trouble when the NHL gets a gander at this thing.

He was just fined on March 16 for a boarding call on Mark Giordano, and was suspended for three games in October 2010 for a questionable violation of Rule 48.

This one is an obvious elbow to Benn's head. It was a minor because Benn wasn't injured, as he played seven more shifts in the second period.

That might also be Doan's saving grace in supplemental discipline once Brendan Shanahan and the Dept. of Player Safety take a look at this act, given their suspend-to-the-injury tradition. Although Gabriel Landeskog wasn't injured, and Andy Sutton's elbow still cost him five games as a repeat offender.

Careless play by Doan; question is, how much will it cost his team in subsequent games during a playoff race? My guess: three games.