CHICAGO -- Chicago Blackhawks forward Brandon Bollig was suspended for two games by the NHL Department of Player Safety on Saturday for an illegal hit on Minnesota Wild defenseman Keith Ballard in Game 4 of their second-round series.
Bollig hit Ballard from behind and sent him into the boards at 17:13 of the second period on Friday. Ballard fell to the ice and laid face-first for a few seconds. He skated off the ice under his own power, went to the dressing room and did not return for the remainder of the game. Bollig received a two-minute minor penalty for boarding.
Ballard will not travel with the Wild to Chicago for Game 5 on Sunday due to an upper-body injury, Wild coach Mike Yeo said on Saturday. Ballard has zero points, a minus-2 rating and averaged 9:18 of ice time in two playoff games this season.
Bollig has no previous history of being fined or suspended for illegal hits.
Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville would not share his opinion of the hit on Saturday.
"I'm not going to comment on it," Quenneville said. "Let the league do what they have to do on that one."
Bollig had zero points, a minus-3 rating and averaged 6:09 of ice time in nine playoff games this season.