Coyotes forward Jason Zucker suspended three games for hit on Florida’s Nick Cousins
Arizona Coyotes winger Jason Zucker has been suspended three games by the NHL’s Department of Player Safety for boarding/interference on Florida Panthers forward Nick Cousins.
Zucker, 31, plastered Cousins against the boards late in the second period of Tuesday’s game at Mullett Arena as retaliation for a hit Cousins threw moments before on Coyotes defenseman Juuso Valimaki.
Cousins was not penalized on the play. Zucker received a five-minute major penalty for boarding and a game misconduct; he was also assessed a five-minute major for fighting Florida’s Gustav Forsling immediately after the hit. In total, Zucker was given 20 minutes of penalties in Tuesday’s game.
Arizona’s Jason Zucker has been suspended for three games for boarding Florida’s Nick Cousins. https://t.co/W1L5vodmom
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) January 4, 2024Things got nasty between Jason Zucker and Nick Cousins at the end of the 2nd period tonight 😳 pic.twitter.com/CgmfIFz76g
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) January 3, 2024Cousins and the Panthers won Tuesday’s game in Tempe, AZ by a 4-1 score, although Alex Kerfoot scored the Coyotes’ only goal of the game during Florida’s five-minute power play early in the third period.
Zucker has never been suspended before in his long NHL career with the Minnesota Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Coyotes, although he was on the receiving end of a hit by Corey Perry that resulted in the then-Ducks forward being suspended four games back in 2013.
The Coyotes originally signed Zucker to a one-year, $5.3 million contract back on July 1. The veteran forward has missed time with a lower-body injury this season but has racked up 12 points (six goals, six assists) and 36 penalty minutes in 29 games while healthy.
The Wild originally selected Zucker in the second round (No. 59 overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. The Newport Beach, CA product made his NHL debut with the club in the 2011-12 campaign and spent parts of nine seasons in Minnesota before being sent to the Penguins ahead of the 2020 trade deadline.
Through 657 career games over parts of 13 NHL seasons with Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Arizona, Zucker has racked up 188 goals and 350 points. He’s added eight goals and 15 points in 46 playoff contests with the Wild and Penguins.
The Coyotes, who currently occupy the second wild card playoff spot in the Western Conference, will return to action on Thursday evening to take on the New York Islanders.