Avalanche’s MacKinnon has major penalty against Oilers rescinded
Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon has had his major penalty for goalie interference from Tuesday’s 4-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers rescinded, as MacKinnon told the media ahead of Thursday’s game against the Seattle Kraken.
#Avs Nathan MacKinnon said the NHL rescinded his major penalty. If you get two in a certain amount of games, it’s an automatic suspension. So he’s back to zero for those purposes.
The reason behind the rescinding is not known. There was plenty of controversy surrounding the call and how the interference was actually created by Oilers’ defenseman Darnell Nurse pushing MacKinnon, so it’s possible the penalty was reviewed and rescinded after the league determined it wasn’t a penalty.
While the rescinding won’t change the outcome of the game, it does mean MacKinnon will not be at risk of a one-game suspension. Players who receive two major penalties of the same type of penalty in a certain amount of games are given an automatic one-game suspension, so this puts MacKinnon’s count back at zero. Dallas Stars winger and MacKinnon’s former teammate Mikko Rantanen received this suspension after receiving two major penalties for physical interactions earlier this season.
The goaltender interference in question occurred late in the second period of the game when MacKinnon was receiving a cross-crease pass while driving the net. He missed on the deflection, sending the puck behind the net, but the combination of his speed in his drive towards the net and Nurse’s shove resulted in MacKinnon crashing into Ingram.
As a result, MacKinnon was ejected from the game, and received a five-minute major penalty for goaltender interference and a 10-minute game misconduct.
MacKinnon has 43 goals and 61 assists for 104 points in 62 games this season, which puts him in first for goals, third for assists, and ties him for second in the league in points, making him one of the favourites for the Hart Trophy.
The Avalanche currently sit in first in the NHL with a 43-11-9 record. They’ll look to bounce back from their loss to the Oilers when they visit the Kraken on Thursday at 8 p.m. MT.