Soucy Faces Suspension For Cross-Check to McDavid's Face

A vicious double-cross-check to Connor McDavid after the final buzzer of the Edmonton Oilers' 4-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks will not go unpunished. Reports have emerged that Carson Soucy will face an NHL Player Safety hearing for his reckless cross-check to the face of the Oilers' superstar. In addition, Nikita Zadorov receives a $5,000 fine for his part in the ruckus. 

Carson Soucy catches McDavid with a cross-check after the final buzzer 😳 pic.twitter.com/Gf03SqgE0l

— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 13, 2024

In a scrum behind the net after a frantic Oilers scramble to try to tie the game, McDavid slashed Soucy on the leg, which prompted the Canucks defenceman to nail McDavid right in the face with his stick, just a fraction of a second after he was also cross-checked in the back by Soucy's teammate Zadorov. Call it a McCross-check Sandwich, if you will.

Soucy received a penalty for cross-checking, but a suspension is being called for by veteran hockey observers:

Still too early to call which way @NHLPlayerSafety will go on Soucy/Zadorov cross-checks on McDavid.

My opinion: Suspension is necessary. Intent is a dangerous game to play. End result matters: a cross-check to the face after buzzer.

Don’t suspend? It’s a free-for-all now.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 13, 2024

TSN Director of Scouting @CraigJButton joins @JayOnrait to discuss the cross-check on Connor McDavid by Carson Soucy at the end of Game 3. pic.twitter.com/Wk0nC69T6n

— JayOnSC (@JayOnSC) May 13, 2024

Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli says if the NHL doesn't crackdown with a suspension, a "free-for-all" could result in the next game. TSN's Craig Button says, "There NEEDS to be a suspension!... Not a hockey play. If the Department of Player Safety does not suspend Carson Soucy, they have failed in doing their job in applying supplemental discipline. No other decision is acceptable."

Paul Bissonnette, on TNT, called it "pretty nasty." 

Biz, Army, and the TNT boys react to McDavid eatting a cross-check to the face at the end of the game pic.twitter.com/w6Tm9RNS6n

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) May 13, 2024

We shall see how the Oilers respond, and whether or not Soucy will be available when Game 4 hits on Tuesday night in Edmonton.