Raffi Torres Suspension Trimmed To 21 Games

“This type of on-ice conduct cannot and will not be tolerated in the National Hockey League,” Bettman said in a statement. “We have seen similar behavior before from Mr. Torres and, particularly given the league’s heightened scrutiny on hits to the head, I believe that a very significant penalty is warranted in this case. We hope and expect that the severity of this incident, and the league’s response to it, will help prevent any similar incident from occurring in the future.”

Torres will be eligible to return to the Coyotes lineup on Nov. 2 when they visit the Ottawa Senators. He will still miss the entirety of the NHL preseason. He’ll forfeit $170,731.68 in salary.

For more on Torres, head over to Phoenix Coyotes blog Five For Howling and SB Nation Arizona. For more on the entire league, check out SB Nation’s NHL hub.

Had Phoenix gone seven games in the Western Semifinals, the West Final and the Cup Final, Torres would have only sat one game next season, and he only would have most $21,341.46 as a result of the 25-game suspension. That’s $853.66 per game.

Alas, that’s not what happened. Torres still has 12 games left on his ban (plus any exhibition games Phoenix plays next season) and he’ll forfeit $21,341.46 for each one of those regular season games.

Ultimately, the decision to overturn the suspension falls on Commissioner Gary Bettman. It seems unlikely that he’ll lessen the blow on Torres’ 25-game ban, which will force him to miss the remainder of the NHL postseason and perhaps even games next season, depending on how deep the Coyotes advance in these playoffs and how many games they have to play should they reach the Stanley Cup Final.

Torres’ 25-game suspension is the longest in Stanley Cup Playoffs history.

Under the current CBA, commissioner Gary Bettman is basically in control of whether or not Torres is worthy of listening to, as well as how much time and attention his case deserves. The players aren’t really thrilled with this, and they might bring it up in CBA negotiations this summer.

Torres was deemed to have broken three separate NHL rules on his hit to Hossa, but perhaps more importantly, was called a repeat offender when the suspension was handed down. Even if he has a legitimate case about the suspension for his hit on Hossa being excessive, his status as a repeat violator of NHL rules might make it less likely that Bettman is willing to listen to his appeal.

NHL players do not get paid during the Stanley Cup Playoffs but, should Torres’ suspension carry over to next season, he’ll have to forfeit $21,341.46 for each regular season game he sits out. That’s a lot of money.

Think about it: By virtue of the Coyotes winning Game 6 Monday night in Chicago, Torres will save three games worth of salary at the very least (considering that had Phoenix lost, Game 7 would have counted against the suspension). That’s $64,024.38 that will remain in Torres’ possession as a result of Phoenix winning one hockey game.

On Saturday, the Coyotes released an official statement in response to the NHL’s ruling and agreed with the judgment. Coyotes general manager Don Maloney had this to say:

No matter how deep the Coyotes make it into the 2012 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs, Torres will miss the remainder of the postseason.

Even if the Coyotes make it to the Stanley Cup finals and each of their playoff series goes the full seven games, Torres would still miss the entire 2012 postseason.

For all news and information regarding the 2012 NHL Stanley Cup playoffs, please visit SB Nation’s dedicated NHL hub.

Stick with SBNation.com for full Coyotes vs. Blackhawks series coverage. For more from the Phoenix perspective, head over to the Five For Howling. For more on the Blackhawks, check out Second City Hockey.

Torres, meanwhile, will miss Game 4 as well. He could miss much more time after being suspended indefinitely by the league for the hit, but that will be decided at an in-person hearing on Friday in New York City.

Stick with SBNation.com for full Coyotes vs. Blackhawks series coverage. For more from the Phoenix perspective, head over to the Five For Howling. For more on the Blackhawks, check out Second City Hockey.

Video: Raffi Torres’ hit on Marian Hossa

Hossa was hospitalized following the hit, which occurred during the first period. It was a late hit in which Torres targeted Hossa’s head while leaving his feet -- the illegal trifecta, one might say.