Vegas Golden Knights forward Alex Tuch will not receive supplemental discipline for a slew-foot on Dallas Stars center Tyler Seguin.
NHL Rule 52 covers slew-footing:
Slew-footing is the act of a player using his leg or foot to knock or kick an opponent’s feet from under him, or pushes an opponent’s upper body backward with an arm or elbow, and at the same time with a forward motion of his leg, knocks or kicks the opponent’s feet from under him, causing him to fall violently to the ice.
Any player who is guilty of slew-footing shall be assessed a match penalty.
There are no specified fines or suspensions for slew-footing, however, supplementary discipline can be applied by the Commissioner at his discretion.
No penalty was called on the play, which came in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final. Note that there’s no option for a minor or major; the only option for an official when calling a slew-foot is a match penalty. The significance of that penalty – a five-minute power play plus an ejection for the player committing the infraction – may contribute to its scarcity.
Similarly, no fine nor suspension was levied against Tuch. Not that this comes as a total surprise.
The NHL Department of Player Safety has not fined nor suspended a player for slew-footing since George Parros took the reins of the disciplinary department.
You’d have to go back to 2016 to find the last time a player received supplemental discipline for a slew-foot. Tuomo Ruuttu was fined $5000 for slew-footing; he was given a tripping penalty during the game.
The 2014-15 season saw two players suspended for slew-foots – Boston’s Brad Marchand (2 games) and Ryan Garbutt of the Dallas Stars (3 games). PK Subban, then with Montreal, was also given a warning about slew-footing opponents.
Here’s some guidance from the NHL on slew-footing:
Referees for the game were Wes McCauley and Francis Charron. Linesmen were Greg Devorski and Matt MacPherson.
