Jets steamed by NHL’s decision to suspend Trouba but not Malkin
TORONTO — Blake Wheeler was still puzzled Tuesday morning by the NHL’s disciplinary process.
The Winnipeg Jets captain understood why the league dealt teammate Jacob Trouba a two-game suspension for his hit to the head of Senators winger Mark Stone, but he couldn’t fathom how Evgeni Malkin escaped punishment for a similar (if still different) check to the head a few days earlier.
“I think we feel internally like they got half of it right,” Wheeler said before a meeting with the Maple Leafs.
Wheeler had just tried to clear a puck in the Jets zone last Thursday against the Penguins when Malkin hit him high and hard. The Pittsburgh centre received a minor interference penalty and drew no further discipline. That irked the Winnipeg winger, especially in light of the suspension to Trouba.