Matt Cooke Receives Game Misconduct in Game 1 of Eastern Conference Finals

Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke leveled Boston Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid into the end boards in the second period of Saturday evening's Game 1 Eastern Conference Finals clash.

UPDATE: Sunday, June 2, at 1:10 a.m. ET by Ian Hanford

According to Sportnet's Nick Kypreos, Cooke will not face further discipline from the NHL for his hit Saturday night:

---End of update---

McQuaid struggled to return to his feet and left the game, while the vicious hit resulted in a five-minute major for Cooke, and a game misconduct that ejected him from the game.

This was the second particularly notable case of Cooke leveling a player in such fashion. Back in 2010, he laid out another Bruin—center Marc Savard. The concussion Savard sustained from the collision was the first of two major ones he suffered, and he hasn't played since. Cooke did not receive a suspension nor a penalty for it.

TSN's Aaron Ward tweeted that McQuaid returned to the ice, and wondered how Cooke's past would impact a potential suspension:

Ward references San Jose Sharks left winger Raffi Torres, who received a 25-game suspension back in 2012 for a hit on Marian Hossa of the Chicago Blackhawks, though it was later reduced to 21 games.

Torres was suspended for the remainder of this year's Western Conference Semifinals for another hit on Los Angeles Kings center Jarret Stoll in that series' opening contest.

The league's Senior Vice President of Player Safety, Brendan Shanahan, revealed that Torres' past played a factor in the severity of his suspension.

ESPN's John Bucigross believes Cooke won't miss any time because of the hit, though, which is what happened when Cooke hit Savard, too:

Cooke is an extremely aggressive and physical player, and has had three assists for the Penguins in the playoffs after finishing the 2012-13 regular season with eight goals and 13 assists in 48 games.