Vancouver Canucks forward Micheal Ferland (79) Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports

Canucks' Micheal Ferland fined for spearing Wild's Ryan Hartman

By Zac Wassink | Last updated Aug 3, 2020 6:08 PM ET

On Monday, the NHL announced that the league fined Vancouver Canucks forward Micheal Ferland $5,000 for spearing Minnesota Wild winger Ryan Hartman in the third period of Sunday's Stanley Cup qualifiers game.

With under 11 minutes remaining in the contest, Ferland found himself in front of the Minnesota bench. Luke Kunin of the Wild appeared to purposely grab Ferland's stick, and Ferland responded with the spear on Hartman that earned him a penalty and fine.

$5,000 is the maximum amount a player can be fined per the collective bargaining agreement between the league and NHL Players' Association. Kunin received a $1,000 fine for his part in the affair.

As ESPN's Greg Wyshynski wrote, the NHL Department of Player Safety has a history of handing out fines instead of suspensions for spearing incidents. The league is also keen on avoiding suspensions for any player during the postseason.

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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