Sharks’ Kane may be facing lengthy suspension

Evander Kane may be facing a lengthy suspension from the NHL after he was ejected from the Sharks’ road preseason game against the Vegas Golden Knights for abuse of officials.

During an altercation in the third period of Sunday’s game, Golden Knights defenseman Deryk Engelland crosschecked Kane in the side. Kane then turned around and slashed Engelland, but his stick also made contact with linesman Kiel Murchison, who was holding onto the back of Engelland’s jersey.

Later in the sequence, Murchison left Engelland and grabbed the front of Kane’s jersey. Almost immediately after, Kane landed on the ice with Murchison on top of him. When Kane got up and with Murchison still holding on, Kane gave the linesman a shove with his left arm.

“The official did a good job of getting in between him and Deryk Engelland, and Kane didn’t like what the official was doing and he put his hands on him,” said former NHL player Eddie Olczyk, an analyst for NBC Sports, on a conference call Monday. “Whether he pushed him or grazed him or whatever, that can’t happen regardless of how heated this rivalry is or if it’s an exhibition game.”

Physical abuse of officials is covered in Rule 40 of the NHL Rulebook, with three separate categories for punishment depending on the severity of the offense. A Category I offense, which includes “deliberately striking an official” and causing injury carries a minimum 20-game suspension. A Category III offense, physically demeaning or threatening an official, carries a minimum three-game suspension.