Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim didn’t pull any punches last night after Taylor Hall’s controversial hit on him in the second period. And it sounds like neither Sanheim nor Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet got any explanation as to why the rather cheap, gutless headshot didn’t result in a five-minute major and a game misconduct.
With just over four minutes left to go in the second period, and the game tied 1-1, Sanheim was battling for the puck along the boards in the defensive zone when he was grabbed by a Canes player. Sanheim began falling to the ice, facing the boards and had no means to protect himself from behind. It was then Hall zeroed in on Sanheim and delivered a vicious hit on the Flyers defenseman, sending him to the ice minus his helmet. Play carried on for a few seconds before officials blew the whistle on the Hall hit. Acting like the innocent bystander, Hall looked incredulous that he could be called for such a hit.
Travis Sanheim on Taylor Hall’s hit:
— Andrew Coté (@acote_88) May 8, 2026
“I’m in a vulnerable spot and he decides to finish his check and just felt like his hands drove my head right through the wall. Thought it was a pretty dirty play.” pic.twitter.com/gEv8WZcNLS
Officials ruled it initially as a five-minute major, but then on further video review decided it was only worth a two-minute minor penalty. Afterwards, Sanheim was asked about the hit and was fairly clear in his thoughts.
“Yeah I was just trying to make a play on the puck,” Sanheim said after the 4-1 loss to Carolina on Thursday night. “I fell to one knee and was just trying to get it out. (I was) in a vulnerable spot and it just felt his hands drove my head right through the wall. Thought it was a pretty dirty play but obviously they only thought it was two minutes, so move on. It’s unfortunate that we gave up a short-handed (goal) at the start of that power play.”
The leniency towards the hit seemed to rattle the Flyers, who never quite looked the same after the hit on the number one defenseman. Fortunately, Sanheim stayed in the game, although it seemed odd league spotters didn’t request the defenseman to head to the locker room for further evaluation. However, after the hit, the Flyers couldn’t do much right. A two-man advantage — thanks in part to Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour temporarily losing his senses — went pear-shaped and a short-handed goal by Carolina tossed more salt in the wound.
No explanation given
Hall hasn’t exactly been a Lady Byng nominee this playoff season. In Game 3 of their opening round series against Ottawa, the Canes forward hit Jake Sanderson with a shoulder to the head which knocked the Sens player out of action. Hall got a minor penalty on the hit. No supplementary discipline was given by the league. When asked if officials explained why the hit wasn’t worthy of a game misconduct, Sanheim said no but added Hall could’ve eased up somewhat on the hit.
“I didn’t ask, and maybe Tocc got an explanation, I’m not quite sure,” Sanheim said when asked about the reasoning behind the hit being a minor infraction. “It just felt like he could’ve laid off a little bit and he decided to put me right through the wall, so that’s his decision.”
Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet was terse in his response to the hit. “No, no I didn’t,” he said when asked if the officials gave him an explanation as to their decision.
There’s no word if the league will take a second look at the hit or if Hall might face any further punishment or fine for the infraction. However Sanheim said the Flyers simply lost their focus and discipline the longer the game went on. This seemed to be true especially following the Hall hit.
“I think towards the latter half of the game and the third period I think frustration started to boil over a little bit. But having said that, it’s not just the officiating, I think it’s our play and the chances we’ve been getting and not capitalizing,” Sanheim said. “So we got one more chance at this and we have to put our best foot forward on Saturday and show up and play. I think the last couple of games if we can continue to do some of the stuff that we’ve done early on and get rewarded for it and get some confidence and feel good about ourselves.”
Game 4 is set for Saturday night, with the Flyers trying to avoid a sweep for the first time since 2011-12 when the Bruins (who won the Cup that year) defeated the Flyers in four games. The sweep would be their seventh in franchise history. Previous to 2011-12, the Flyers were swept in the 1996-97 Stanley Cup final by Detroit. In 1976-77, the Bruins swept them in the semifinals while the Habs defeated Philadelphia four straight in the 1975-75 finals. The only other occasions were 1968-69 when they lost to St. Louis in the quarterfinals, and 1970-71 when Chicago took them out in the quarterfinals.
It will be interesting to see how Game 4 plays out, or if Sanheim is the bigger man and shakes hands with Hall in the lineup should Carolina win Saturday night.
