NHL suspends game of match against Sharks' Thornton

San Jose center Joe Thornton was suspended for the fourth game of the Sharks vs. Vegas series for the illegal check of Golden Knights forward Tomas Nosek's header in Game 3 the NHL Players Security Department.

In the second half of Saturday night's 6-3 win for the Golden Knights, Nosek played the puck in his defensive zone while skating to the back of the net for Vegas. Thornton skated to Nosek and delivered "a direct shoulder in Nosek's head," according to the NHL.

While the Knight was squatting slightly, he did not change the position of his body until Thornton gave it a shot. The NHL argued that Thornton could have done a full control by Nosek's shoulder rather than by the head.

Thornton got a minor penalty for the shot at 16:54 of the second period. His last suspension was in the 2010-11 season.

After Match 3, Thornton defended his shot at Nosek. "Honestly, I thought I'd barely touch him.He came back.It's just one of those pieces.I think my son strikes me like that six times a day, it's just a strange position he's put in. It's all, "Thornton told me.

Ryan Reaves, Nosek's teammate, disagreed with this assessment on Monday. "I have a boyfriend with a grandfather who lives the same thing.He does not see very well as he gets older.He needs glasses.If he is hanging, he will have a hard time seeing from the press, "he told the Las Vegas Sun.