It looks like the Pittsburgh Penguins will be without one of their top forwards for an upcoming crucial stretch of games.
On Tuesday, the Department of Player Safety suspended top-line winger Bryan Rust for three games following a hit to the head of Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser on Sunday. Boeser was concussed on the play and was placed on injured reserve by the Canucks.
Rust, 33, has no prior history of suspension, and the hit happened around the net-front in the waning seconds of the game with the Penguins protecting the lead. These factors, along with others, are why head coach Dan Muse did not agree with the league's ruling.
"I think three games is a lot," Muse said. "I don't agree with it. The organization [doesn't] agree with it. They have a tough job in the league in terms of looking at these things.
"Bryan Rust is a guy who you know what you're going to get from him every night. He's a guy that works his a-- off every day. He's a guy that's heart and soul. One thing he's not is a dirty player."
Muse wasn't done there.
"He's going to do everything he can to help the team win, and he's done it in a way..." Muse began. "I mean, I've coached against this guy. He's been in the league, for what, 12 years? [650]-plus games? You see his track record. He's a guy who works, but he also plays the game the right way, and he plays it clean. So, based on that track record, based on the player, who he is, what he's shown for a very long time in this league... yeah, I disagree with it.
"Again, I understand the league's got a tough job, but in terms of the play, like, it's the end of the game. He's doing everything he can to just get back to the net front, not allow another shot on net in the closing seconds. And, so, the way he comes in there, he kind of tries to come in on the defensive side. And when you look at the video, too, there's a lot of things happening there. There's the visual that you see, but I also think there's the intent and how all those things unfolded."
Barring an appeal, Rust's suspension will be in effect until the Penguins' game against the Ottawa Senators on Monday, and the team will face the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday and the New York Rangers on Saturday. He has 18 goals and 39 points in 47 games for the Penguins this season, and the team has five games remaining before the three-week Olympic hiatus.
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