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Different league, same result.
In his first game after being suspended for 5 games because of an illegal check to the head, Zac Rinaldo continued where he left off, with another hit to the head, this time on Kane Lafranchise.
Rinaldo is now suspended indefinitely, starting with the P Bruins game tonight against Portland, and could be suspended longer than just the one game. The AHL had the option of honoring Rinaldo's NHL suspension in the AHL, but chose not to.
We are left wondering what Don Sweeney saw in Zac Rinaldo, who in his 52 games in the NHL so far has put up his worst numbers in basically every category so far, including score adjusted corsi for percentage, score adjusted fenwick for percentage, and points per 60 minutes, to name a few.
Zac Rinaldo suspended indefinitely pending league review of his match penalty for check to head on Friday night, per Bruce Cassidy. #AHL
— Mark Divver (@MarkDivver) March 5, 2016
Rinaldo clearing waivers and being sent down to the AHL does not bode well for his future, as even the GM who felt it was prudent to move a third round pick for him felt that it was best to cut bait on him. It is highly unlikely that he is recalled again, as teams only have 4 non emergency recalls after the trade deadline, with the Bruins having used one on Noel Acciari already. Rinaldo is under contract for one more year after this.