MOSCOW, May 11 (R-Sport) - Russian forward Ilya Kovalchuk has escaped further disciplinary action after his last-minute ejection for violent conduct in the 3-2 hockey world championships defeat to Finland on Friday, the Russian team spokesman told R-Sport on Saturday.
Kovalchuk and Finland’s Janne Pesonen each received 20-minute game misconducts for tussling in front of the net two seconds from the end of the third period.
Video replays showed Kovalchuk landing a powerful blow to the face that floored Pesonen, but officials have decided to let the matter rest.
"After viewing the footage, the disciplinary committee of the IIHF [governing body] decided not to pursue additional punishment for the players," Mikhail Zakharov said.
Earlier Saturday, Finnish defenseman Sami Lepisto admitted to having provoked Kovalchuk during the game, Russia's second defeat of the competition.
Kovalchuk, 30, is an alternative captain at the New Jersey Devils and leads the scoring charts at the world championships in Finland and Sweden with nine points in five games.
The Russians saw their 13-game unbeaten streak at the world championship come to an end Thursday with a shocking 2-1 loss to France, and the defeat to Finland left them second in the pool with nine points.
Russia has a day off Saturday and will look to regroup ahead of Sunday’s game against Slovakia. The Finns take on Austria on Saturday.
