Penguins forward could face opening-night suspension after ugly missed spear by Blake Lizotte
Blake Lizotte may have handed Dan Muse an ugly opening-night problem after a missed spear on Porter Martone in Pittsburgh's season-ending loss.
The play itself is the story now, not the final score. Pittsburgh's season is over, and that changes the fallout right away.
If the NHL's Department of Player Safety decides Lizotte crossed the line, any suspension would not be served in these playoffs.
It would roll straight into Game 1 of the 2026-27 season.
That is the part the Penguins can't shrug off. A missed call on Wednesday can still hit their lineup months from now.
Martone doubled over at the top of the crease after Lizotte drove his stick upward in traffic, and the officials let play continue like nothing happened.
That clip is going to get a long look because it is not a gray-area hit on the forecheck or a messy net-front tie-up.
It is a stick infraction with no whistle and no in-game penalty attached.
The video has already taken off online and the sequence is easy to isolate frame by frame.
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A bad ending that can spill into October for the Penguins and Blake Lizotte
The timing makes this sting more for Pittsburgh. The Penguins were eliminated in Game 6, so there is no next playoff game available to burn off discipline.
That leaves Muse staring at a problem that could still be on the board when camp is over and the regular season opens.
No coach wants his bottom six scrambled before the first puck drop.
Pittsburgh finished 41-25-16 and grabbed second place in the Metropolitan Division, which made this postseason feel like a step back into the fight.
Ending it with a player safety question is a rotten final note.
It also lands on a roster that already has real summer tension.
Evgeni Malkin, Anthony Mantha, Kevin Hayes, Noel Acciari, Connor Dewar and Connor Clifton are all pending unrestricted free agents.
So even a short ban matters. If Lizotte gets 1 game, that is not just a headline for April.
It becomes a lineup story for October.
And the NHL has every reason to make an example of the play if it sees intent.
Spears are the kind of action the league usually treats hard because they are deliberate, dangerous, and easy to identify on video.
For the Penguins, that is the danger now. Their season ended Wednesday night, but Blake Lizotte may not be done paying for it.
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YESTERDAY
APRIL 29, 2026
| ||||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Pavel Dorofeyev | 3 | - | 3 | |
| Shea Theodore | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Clayton Keller | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Lawson Crouse | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Kirby Dach | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brendan Gallagher | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jake Guentzel | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Dominic James | 1 | - | 1 | |
| John Marino | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Alexandre Texier | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cam York | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Zachary Bolduc | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Noah Cates | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Gage Goncalves | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Yanni Gourde | - | 1 | 1 | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||
| 2025-2026 NHL STANDINGS | ||||||
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Sabres | 82 | 50 | 23 | 9 | 109 | |
| Lightning | 82 | 50 | 26 | 6 | 106 | |
| Canadiens | 82 | 48 | 24 | 10 | 106 | |
| Bruins | 82 | 45 | 27 | 10 | 100 | |
| Senators | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 99 | |
| Red Wings | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 92 | |
| Panthers | 82 | 40 | 38 | 4 | 84 | |
| Maple Leafs | 82 | 32 | 36 | 14 | 78 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Hurricanes | 82 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 113 | |
| Penguins | 82 | 41 | 25 | 16 | 98 | |
| Flyers | 82 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 98 | |
| Capitals | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 95 | |
| Blue Jackets | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 92 | |
| Islanders | 82 | 43 | 34 | 5 | 91 | |
| Devils | 82 | 42 | 37 | 3 | 87 | |
| Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Avalanche | 82 | 55 | 16 | 11 | 121 | |
| Stars | 82 | 50 | 20 | 12 | 112 | |
| Wild | 82 | 46 | 24 | 12 | 104 | |
| Mammoth | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Blues | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 86 | |
| Predators | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 86 | |
| Jets | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 82 | |
| Blackhawks | 82 | 29 | 39 | 14 | 72 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Golden Knights | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 95 | |
| Oilers | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 93 | |
| Ducks | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Kings | 82 | 35 | 27 | 20 | 90 | |
| Sharks | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 86 | |
| Kraken | 82 | 34 | 37 | 11 | 79 | |
| Flames | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| Canucks | 82 | 25 | 49 | 8 | 58 | |
COMPLETE STANDINGS | ||||||