No penalty but a three game suspension for NY Islanders winger Maxim Tysplakov

New York Islanders winger Maxim Tsyplakov was suspended three games by the NHL Department of Player Safety on Friday for 'an illegal check to the head' against Philadelphia Flyers forward Ryan Poehling during the first period of Thursday's 5-3 loss at UBS Arena.

Tysplakov, a 26-year-old rookie from Russia, has played in all 44 games for the Islanders this season. He'll now miss the next three games against the San Jose Sharks, Columbus Blue Jackets and Flyers.

Everyone seemed to have a different opinion about whether the hit that knocked Poehling out of the game was clean or dirty in the following minutes. Fans debated, journalists debated, every angle was put into slow-motion replay, and still, views were divided.

"He was trying to hit him with his shoulder is what he was trying to do, and yes, he does get him," said Butch Goring on the MSG Networks broadcast. "He's not coming up; he just turns his back and hits him sideways... he's trying to hit him clean, in my opinion."

The referees on the ice did the absolute right thing. They called a five-minute major penalty, which allowed the NHL situation room to review the hit for several minutes and determine if it was a penalty. There was clear contact with the head, but was it the main point of contact? That was the likely debate in the room to determine whether a major penalty or a penalty of any kind was warranted.

After a lengthy review, the NHL situation room determined it wasn't a penalty, which made Flyers coach John Tortorella understandably livid after losing a player who had to be helped off the ice.

"I understand why John would be mad about seeing his player being hurt, but at the same time, I agree with the call on the ice," said head coach Patrick Roy. "I saw the exact same thing as the referees. And I think the referees did the right thing in a way that they called it a major to make sure they have a better look at it. And I agree with the call."

It's hard to understand what NHL Safety saw and heard during Tsyplakov's hearing to come to a different conclusion than the Situation Room did during the game. If the hit was 'dirty' so be it, but there should be more consistency from the league as to how these hits are interpreted, especially when video review is used during the game to assess what happened.