Philadelphia Flyers winger Pierre-Édouard Bellemare will miss Game 4 against the Washington Capitals after being suspended for a hit from behind on the Caps’ Dmitry Orlov.
The hit happened just over eight minutes into the third period, with the Capitals leading 4-1. Bellemare was given a five-minute major and game misconduct by referee Kevin Pollock.
Orlov was not injured on the play; he returned to the game minutes later and ultimately assisted on the Caps’s sixth goal.
“For anyone who knows Belly, that was not an intentional play. It’s an unfortunate play all the way around,” said Flyers coach Dave Hakstol. “That wasn’t a discipline issue whatsoever. The last five, six, seven minutes were a tough seven minutes to play, but we did the best we could.”
