The referees from last night’s game have filed centerman Antoine Vermette’s slash of a linesman under Category II under the NHL’s rules for punishment for contact with an official.
Rule 40 of the NHL rulebook covering physical abuse of officials describes three different categories for the offending player, with the one being applied to Vermette being Category II which states that, “any player or goalkeeper who deliberately applies physical force to an official in any manner (excluding actions as set out in Category I), which physical force is applied without intent to injure, shall be automatically suspended for not less than ten (10) games.