NEW YORK (AP) — Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad has been suspended for two games for elbowing Lightning forward Brandon Hagel in the head midway through Game 4 of the Panthers’ first-round series against Tampa Bay.
The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced its ruling after a phone hearing with Ekblad earlier Tuesday. He will be out for Game 5 and either Game 6 of this series or the Panthers’ first game next round.
No penalty was called when Ekblad hit Hagel in the chin with his right elbow and forearm with just under nine minutes left in the second period on Monday night. Hagel left the ice and did not return, and Ekblad scored the first of two goals in 11 seconds late in the third to give the defending Stanley Cup champions a comeback victory and a 3-1 series lead.
Coach Jon Cooper said Hagel would not play in Game 5. Hagel was suspended for Game 3 for his late hit that knocked Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov out of Game 2.
Ekblad missed the first two games and the final 18 of the regular season after being suspended for violating the league and NHLPA's performance-enhancing drug policy. Florida got accustomed to playing without Ekblad.
“If it’s the first time it happens, there’s even questions from the coaching staff about what’s the right adjustment to make in your lineup and how will that play out — there’s a lot of unknown," coach Paul Maurice said. “Because we’ve been through it so much when Aaron’s out we know what the D-pairs are — let’s assume — if he’s out of the lineup.”
Another Panthers defenseman, Niko Mikkola, was fined $5,000 for boarding Tampa Bay's Zemgus Girgensons. Mikkola was given a five-minute major and ejected for the play early in the third period of Game 4.
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad (5) celebrates his goal during the third period in Game 4 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Monday, April 28, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
PARIS (AP) — A Paris court is to rule on Monday in a case involving 10 people accused of cyberbullying French first lady Brigitte Macron by spreading false online claims about her gender and sexuality, allegations her daughter said damaged her health and family life.
The defendants, eight men and two women aged 41 to 60, are accused of posting “numerous malicious comments” falsely claiming that President Emmanuel Macron ’s wife was born a man and linking the 24-year age gap with her husband to pedophilia. Some of the posts were viewed tens of thousands of times.
Brigitte Macron did not attend the two-day trial in October.
Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she described as the “deterioration” of her mother’s life since the online harassment intensified. “She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,” Auzière told the court. She said the impact has extended to the entire family, including Macron’s grandchildren.
Defendant Delphine Jegousse, 51, who is known as Amandine Roy and describes herself as a medium and an author, is considered as having played a major role in spreading the rumor after she released a four-hour video on her YouTube channel in 2021.
The X account of Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, known as Zoé Sagan on social media, was suspended in 2024 after his name was cited in several judicial investigations.
Other defendants include an elected official, a teacher and a computer scientist. Several told the court their comments were intended as humor or satire and said they did not understand why they were being prosecuted. They face up to two years in prison if convicted.
The case follows years of conspiracy theories falsely alleging that Brigitte Macron was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, which is actually the name of her brother. The Macrons have also filed a defamation suit in the United States against conservative influencer Candace Owens.
The Macrons, who have been married since 2007, first met at the high school where he was a student and she was a teacher. Brigitte Macron, 24 years her husband’s senior, was then called Brigitte Auzière, a married mother of three.
Emmanuel Macron, 48, has been France’s president since 2017.
FILE - French President's wife Brigitte Macron arrives ahead of the ceremony outside "La Belle Equipe" bar, Thursday Nov. 13, 2025 in Paris as part of ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of terrorist attacks. (Ludovic Marin, Pool photo via AP, File)
