Flames forward suspended 5 games

Brendan Shanahan handed out his first suspension as the NHL's new discipline czar, suspending Calgary forward Pierre Letourneau-Leblond for five games for an incident in Tuesday's game against Vancouver.

Letourneau-Leblond will be suspended for four preseason games and one regular season game after boarding Matt Clackson of the Canucks.

"Letourneau-Leblond took a direct route toward Clackson, hit him squarely from behind into the boards and drove through the check high and hard," said Shanahan, whose title is senior vice-president of player safety. "Clackson's back was turned toward Letourneau-Leblond well before the contact, requiring that Letourneau-Leblond avoid or minimize the check. He did neither."

Shanahan is taking over the role from longtime NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell.

Just like he did on Thursday, Shanahan will release a video explaining any future suspensions in an effort to bring transparency to the decision-making process — an area where critics often felt Campbell fell short.

The first-year Flames forward will be eligible to return for a regular season game on Oct. 10. He also forfeits more than $6,000 US in salary.