Divided by teams, united in taking potshots at referees. If there’s one thing hockey fans love to do, that’s slamming match officials for any slip-up. And now, as the Florida Panthers vs Tampa Bay Lightning Game 4 commenced, Aaron Ekblad‘s antics once again brought the flak on the refs.
In today’s game at the Amerant Bank Arena, the Cats won the match 4-2 to extend their lead to 3-1 in the seven-game series. However, it was the Panthers’ defenseman Aaron Ekblad’s hit on the Bolts’ Brandon Hagel that got the community wheezing. In the second period of the match, the Florida star took out Hagel with a mighty elbow to the head, but Ekblad didn’t receive any penalty for his thunderous blow.
Naturally, the community members could hardly swallow the pill. ESPN’s P.K. Subban took to X on April 28 to note his amusement at how Aaron walked away from the whole incident unscathed. “Dude, look where the ref is. The fans are going to want to hang that guy upside down,” Subban joked in his social media update, noting that Aaron’s hit was essentially “a headshot“.
For those who remember, Ekblad only returned to the action recently. In March, Aaron was slapped with a 20-match suspension after having violated the NHL’s Performance Enhancing Substances Program. Today’s hit on Hagel, if you consider that to be a penalty-worthy one, would mean that this is Ekbald’s second slip-up within 18 months, which, according to the official NHL website, can lead to up to $15,000 fines.
Penalty or not? #nhl #hit #playoffs #penalty pic.twitter.com/3spRPIQSuU
— P.K. Subban (@PKSubban1) April 29, 2025
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