Philadelphia Flyers forward Chris VandeVelde has been suspended two games for elbowing Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced Friday.
VandeVelde's out $7,661 due to the suspension. He'll miss games Saturday against the Pittsburgh Penguins and Monday against the New York Islanders.
The incident occurred in Philadelphia's win over the Blackhawks on Wednesday, and Toews stayed in the game, apparently suffering no ill effects from the elbow.
VandeVelde's suspension opens a lineup spot for Jakub Voracek, who has been injured and is a significant talent upgrade over VandeVelde.
β Dave Molinari (@MolinariPG) March 18, 2016
VandeVelde and Toews met after the game, according to the Courier-Post's Dave Isaac.
"(Toews) even sent me a text message saying, 'Don't worry about it. Everything is going to be OK,'" VandeVelde said.
The two players are friends, and VandeVelde added that Toews said he was "an honest player."
