The NHL Player Safety department announced Monday that Hartman was being suspended for 10 games for roughing against the Ottawa Senators’ Tim Stutzle. The suspension will cost him $487,804.90 in lost pay.
Hartman ‘used his forearm to violently slam’ Stutzle’s head into the ice during a faceoff late in the second period. The department disagreed with Hartman’s assertion that he put his hand there to regain his balance and that the fall was accidental.
‘This is not a hockey play,’ the department said in a video, calling the play ‘inherently dangerous and unacceptable.’
Stutzle suffered a cut on his head but was stitched up and returned in the third period.
Hartman received a match penalty and was offered an in-person hearing, reserved for a potential suspension of six games or more.
Hartman had been suspended four times previously in his career, most recently for three games in April for throwing his stick in the direction of an on-ice official.
He also has been fined seven times, including once in January for high-sticking an opponent during a faceoff. The department noted that he has been disciplined roughly once every 60 games.
The suspension was the longest this season, topping the eight games given to the New York Rangers’ Matt Rempe.
Hartman will be able to appeal the suspension to commissioner Gary Bettman.
