The ECHL had to step in when tempers did not cool between the Iowa Heartlanders and Kansas City Mavericks. In Saturday’s game at the Cable Dahmer Arena, tension flew off the rails in the first period.
Nico Blachman is receiving this suspension and fine under ECHL Rule 28, which outlines supplementary discipline the league can place on players for excessive fighting, or calls made in response to dangerous aggression that may not have been properly punished in the game. Blachman received a 5-minute fighting major for this incident and will sit in Iowa’s April 3 matchup against the Toledo Walleye.
Iowa’s social media team went as far as calling Kansas City the “Turtles” because their players got down on the ice and shielded themselves from Blachman’s ruthless fighting:
With Iowa’s loss in this game, they were eliminated from playoff contention for the third consecutive year, but have a chance to play for pride when they host Kansas City on April 13th to finish off the season.
