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Canucks forward Nils Höglander fined $2,864.58 for high-sticking Detroit’s Jake Walman

Originally posted on Canucksarmy | By Mike Gould | Last updated 2/16/24

Vancouver Canucks forward Nils Höglander has been fined $2,864.58, the maximum allowable under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for high-sticking Detroit Red Wings defenceman Jake Walman on Thursday night.

The incident occurred during the third period of Vancouver’s 4-1 win over the Red Wings at Rogers Arena on Thursday. As CanucksArmy‘s Wyatt Arndt managed to capture, Höglander swung around and whacked Walman in the side of the head with his stick while battling for positioning in front of the Detroit net.

Höglander was not assessed a penalty on the play, but the NHL Department of Safety clearly caught wind of the incident and has come down with a fine on the 23-year-old winger. It’s the second fine of Höglander’s career; back on November 21, he was fined the same amount for slew-footing San Jose Sharks forward Kevin Labanc.

In the end, Höglander and the Canucks came away with the last laugh on Thursday night. The Swedish winger picked up an assist as the Canucks became the first team in the National Hockey League to reach the 80-point threshold this season.

Walman has taken two high sticks to the head tonight, the latest from Höglander pic.twitter.com/zi4fKZtjJ3

— Wyatt Arndt (@TheStanchion) February 16, 2024

Thursday’s game was particularly difficult for Walman, who finished with a minus-3 rating and as the recipient of two Canucks high-sticks — the first coming as a result of an accidental follow-through on a shot by Elias Pettersson.

The Red Wings and Canucks previously faced off on February 10, with Walman scoring the game-winning goal on a penalty shot in overtime and celebrating it by pulling off a “Griddy” dance move. The Canucks threw that back at him on Thursday, with Nikita Zadorov commemorating a goal of his own with a similar dancing celebration.

Vancouver and Detroit won’t face off again this season unless they meet up in the Stanley Cup Final. The Canucks finished the season series between the two teams with a 1-0-1 record. They’ll return to action on Saturday to take on the Winnipeg Jets at 7:00 p.m. PT.

This article first appeared on Canucksarmy and was syndicated with permission.

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