In Saturday’s game between the New York Islanders and the San Jose Sharks, Bo Horvat scored the overtime winner to clinch the victory. But he is also facing a $2,500 fine for poking Sharks’ forward William Eklund on the bench. Now, fans are mocking the league over how it hands out fines.
Both the Sharks and the Islanders are fighting for a playoff spot in their respective conferences. The Islanders currently hold a playoff position in a tight Eastern race, while the Sharks are just one point shy of a playoff berth.
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Bo Horvat fined after the game
Despite Macklin Celebrini scoring for his third consecutive game, the Sharks fell in overtime on Saturday.
“We had a really good first period. Ilya Sorokin made some crucial saves. That was a big overtime goal by Bo and a great play by Schaefer to set up that breakaway,” Islanders head coach Patrick Roy told NHL.com after the game.
However, what has fans talking now isn’t the outcome of the game, but the fact that Horvat has been fined $2,500 by the NHL. The fine stems from an incident in which Horvat chirped at Sharks’ forward William Eklund, who was sitting on the bench. Before skating away, Horvat pulled up Eklund’s helmet—not to injure him, but to tease him.
Fans mock the NHL
Fans online are mocking the league for doling out fines for what they see as “harmless” antics.
“This is literally human nature, grow up NHL,” one fan wrote on X.
“$2,500 for a little bench chat? NHL’s lost the plot,” another added.
“Harmless, just some good old-fashioned fun. League has gotta hit the brakes on becoming a police state,” a third fan wrote.
You can watch the debated incident below.
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