New York, NY – The fallout from Sunday's brawl between the Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs continued on Tuesday, with the National Hockey League suspending Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel for the remainder of the preseason.
Kessel will sit out his club's final three tune-ups for the regular season after repeatedly slashing Buffalo enforcer John Scott prior to a faceoff, part of which precipitated a fight between the two players and a fracas between the clubs at the midway point of the third period in an eventual 5-3 Toronto victory.
Kessel was issued a match penalty for slashing for his actions. The 25-year- old had previously gone unpunished for repeated slashes to the lower bodies of Philadelphia Flyers players Luke Schenn and Ben Holmstrom during a preseason contest last week.
Earlier on Tuesday, the NHL fined Sabres head coach Ron Rolston an undisclosed amount for selecting Scott to be placed opposite Kessel on the draw.
On Monday, Toronto forward David Clarkson was handed an automatic 10-game suspension for leaving the bench to aid Kessel during his scrap. However, that ban will not begin until the regular season commences.
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