Cooke banned for rest of regular season for head hit

TORONTO | Mon Mar 21, 2011 6:00pm EDT

TORONTO (Reuters) - Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke has been suspended for the rest of the regular season and the first round of the playoffs for his elbow to the head of New York Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh, the NHL said.

Cooke, who appeared to stick out his elbow to hit McDonagh near center ice in the third period of his team's 5-2 loss to the Rangers on Sunday, was given a five-minute penalty and also ejected from the game.

The ruling marks Cooke's fourth suspension over the past three seasons for illegal hits, which the league said factored into its decision.

"Mr. Cooke, a repeat offender, directly and unnecessarily targeted the head of an opponent who was in an unsuspecting and vulnerable position," NHL Senior Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell said in a statement on Monday.

"This isn't the first time this season that we have had to address dangerous behavior on the ice by Mr. Cooke, and his conduct requires an appropriately harsh response."

He will sit out the Penguins' 10 remaining regular season games and be ineligible for the best-of-seven first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The suspension comes just over a month since Penguins owner Mario Lemieux said the NHL was not tough enough in punishing members of the New York Islanders after a fight-filled game against the Penguins.

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