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Will Panthers’ Seth Jones be punished for elbowing Lightning’s Brandon Hagel?
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- Will Panthers’ Seth Jones be punished for elbowing Lightning’s Brandon Hagel?
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Will Panthers' Seth Jones be punished for elbowing Lightning's Brandon Hagel? appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning have been rivals with one another for decades now, since their introduction into the NHL in the early 1990s, and the Lightning have a particular bone to pick with Panthers defenseman Seth Jones following his actions against forward Brandon Hagel in Monday evening's matchup.
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Jones leveled Hagel with what appeared to be an elbow to the head, but he was not penalized for the incident. Adding to the controversy is the report that Jones is not expected to face any additional supplemental discipline from the NHL Department of Player Safety.
According to insider Chris Johnston of TSN, Jones isn't expected to be punished, which is naturally upsetting to the Lightning.
"Not expecting Seth Jones to receive any supplemental discipline for the hit that knocked Brandon Hagel out of last night's game," Johnston wrote on X. "There's obviously a long history between the teams, and [Lightning] weren't happy with the play."
After the hit, Hagel departed and did not return to the game, which the Panthers ultimately won by a 5-2 final score. Head coach Jon Cooper did not have an update on Hagel's condition afterward.
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It won't be long before both teams play each other again, as they will face-off at Amerant Bank Arena on Dec. 27.
Panthers' Aleksander Barkov injured by Brandon Hagel in playoffs
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The Panthers and Lightning have been geographical rivals with one another since their introduction into the NHL in the early 1990s, but the rivalry reached new heights in recent years thanks to their three postseason matchups in the last four seasons.
The Panthers have won both series in each of the last two years en route to consecutive Stanley Cup championships, and there were more than a few controversial incidents in the most recent series. A high hit by Hagel on Sasha Barkov led to 5-minute major penalty and Hagel's suspension for the subsequent Game 3.
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Lightning forward Jake Guentzel was leveled by Florida's Matthew Tkachuk at the end of that Game 3, leading to a 5-minute major penalty assessed to him.
There is continued bad blood between the two franchises, and that continued in Monday night's tilt. Jones escaped any further discipline from the NHL Department of Player Safety for his actions, and it'll be interesting to see what the fallout is when the two Atlantic Division rivals meet again.
Related: ClutchPoints' NHL Power Rankings, Week 11: Are the Wild contenders with Quinn Hughes?
