Caps Wilson Suspended 20 Games

Well, if today's decision on the suspension of Washington's Tom Wilson isn't a sign of things to come, especially for repeat offenders, then I don't know what would be.  The NHL Department of Player Safety suspended the Capitals forward for 20 games on Wednesday afternoon, just ahead of the team's opening night game against the Boston Bruins.

Wilson was suspended for his high, reckless hit on St. Louis' Oskar Sundqvist on Sunday, in his team's last preseason game, picking the head of his opponent and causing an injury.  As the video below illustrates, Wilson is considered a repeat offender, this being his 4th suspension in very close to a calendar year and the suspension length was partially determined to that frequency of offenses.

This is a huge blow to the Capitals, taking a key player out of their lineup for a quarter of the season, but it is an even bigger blow to Scott's hockey pool team, as he misses out on a big chunk of action from his 11th round pick this year.  Wilson will be eligible to return on November 21st, when the Blackhawks visit the Verizon Center.

As for preseason Waiver Draft, prior to this season, only injuries were eligible to be swapped out and the only change made to the proceedings, announced at the draft, were demotions were now eligible.  Unfortunately, that excludes suspensions.