Wild veteran left wing Mike Rupp has been suspended four games -- the final regular-season game Sunday against Nashville and three playoff games -- for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis Blues forward T.J. Oshie on Thursday night. He forfeits $7,692.31 in salary.
Rupp was assessed a match penalty midway through the second period for "attempt to injure." Replays showed Oshie had given up the puck when Rupp came by with what the league considers a classic head pick. Rupp's left shoulder hit Oshie's head with that being the principle point of contract -- the chief criteria for an illegal check to the head. Basically, for Rupp to make this hit, the puck needs to be on Oshie's stick and there needs to be full body contact.
Rupp was an easy target for the league to send a message on because like I said last night, Rupp was playing probably his final regular-season game, his 13th of the season. It is unlikely the Wild plans to play Rupp in the playoffs considering he hadn't played since Feb. 1 and played four games since Dec. 31.
If Rupp can't find a job this summer, it'll be a shame if that was the final play of what has been a good career.
This was Rupp's first suspension by the NHL and although he has long been a tough customer, he has done it in a mostly honest fashion. Knowing Rupp, I don't believe he intended to injure Oshie. But he undoubedly messed up. Oshie left the game hurt and isn't playing tonight in Dallas.
Former Wild center Wes Walz sent out a couple tweets (see below) that ticked off Blues fans and Ken Hitchcock today, but the one point he makes that is accurate? No chance Rupp plays last night if the Blues didn't run around last game taking runs as Mikael Granlund, Jared Spurgeon and Darcy Kuemper. It was a continuation of a trend in many Wild games in St. Louis in recent years. This is the story on the St. Louis Dispatch web site that ran the morning of the game in St. Louis a few weeks ago. The Blues tried to send Minnesota a message, the Wild was physically outplayed that game in St. Louis, so the Wild responded by putting Rupp in during the rematch to protect its players and supply muscle. No chance the Wild wanted Rupp to take off Oshie's head, but last game's physicality by St. Louis is why the Wild felt the need to play Rupp yesterday.
Disagree all you want, but that's the facts.
