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Craig Smith fined $5,000 for high-stick on Buffalo’s Jerry D’Amigo

In the first period of Saturday night’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, Craig Smith was issued a double minor after catching Jerry D’Amigo with a nasty high stick. You may remember cringing as Buffalo’s athletic trainer picked up D’Amigo’s freaking teeth from the ice.

The penalty did not look intentional, (you can see Smith bend down to be all like “oh s***, sorry man!”) but that didn’t make it any less egregious. It was deemed bad enough to warrant a second look by the NHL Department of Player Safety:

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” data-partner=”tweetdeck”><p>Nashville&#39;s Craig Smith has been fined $5,000 for high-sticking Buffalo&#39;s Jerry D&#39;Amigo.</p>&mdash; NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) <a href=”https://twitter.com/NHLPlayerSafety/status/579736864959160320″>March 22, 2015</a></blockquote>

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Hockey players are supposed to be responsible for their sticks at all times, and Smith essentially whips his through the air for no particular reason. (Stop snickering.) It’s hard to get upset at a fine that essentially equals a slap on the wrist for breaking the rules a little too much.