This weekend, NHL analysts Kevin Bieska and Elliotte Friedman publicly condemned Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen for his brutal hit on Calgary Flames winger Matt Coronato calling the play “inexcusable” and urging the league to step in with potential supplemental discipline.The incident came late in the second period of Saturday’s Stars-Flames matchup when Coronato retrieved a puck along the end boards with his back turned. Rantanen accelerated on the forecheck and delivered a forceful shove directly into the numbers sending Coronato face-first into the glass.On Hockey Night in Canada, the broadcast panel wasted no time holding Rantanen accountable openly questioning his judgment and intent on the play. Former NHLer Kevin Bieksa said that the entire sequence was avoidable and unnecessary given the defensive support already in place.“There's just no reason to finish your hit there. If you’re Rantanen, you’re backchecking hard and your defenseman is right there. Coronato moves the puck, he’s defenseless. Rantanen gets paid how much? Ninety-six million. Just score goals. What are you doing? Why are you hitting guys?”Elliotte Friedman compared the hit to a previous controversial sequence involving the Islanders and emphasized how different this situation was in the eyes of the NHL.“The NHL felt very strongly… in that earlier play, the skate contact put him in a position where it could happen. This one tonight, there’s no excuse for it. You can’t do that. You can’t hit a guy in the numbers like that. I have no problem with the call. Now the biggest question is, is there supplemental discipline? I could see it for that.”The 22-year-old left the ice bloodied but later returned for the third period with his nose stitched up. Rantanen was assessed a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct which was his second ejection in three games for a hit from behind.Mikko Rantanen claims the hit on Matt Coronato was unintentionalRantanen defended himself afterward during the postgame presser stressing that the hit was accidental and out of character. He insisted he was reacting to an unexpected change in Coronato’s balance rather than attempting a dangerous play.“Never meant to do that, never done that my whole career,” Rantanen said. “I’ve played hard but never tried to be dirty on purpose. It was an unfortunate moment, but never meant to do it.”He added that the contact looked worse because Coronato pitched forward just as he arrived.“I’ve never done it, if I don’t get touched, I’m not going to just bury a guy from behind. I would never do it. It happened quickly when he fell forward. Unfortunately, I pushed him, but hopefully he’s not doing too badly. I wish him all the best.”During the postgame interview, Flames head coach Ryan Huska offered a blunt assessment when asked about the play.“I thought it was a terrible hit… I didn’t think it was a good hit at all,” Huska said.As of now, the league has not announced a suspension or fine for Rantanen but the Department of Player Safety is expected to review the boarding major. The Stars went on to fall 4-2 to Calgary in the matchup while Coronato finished the night with over 15 minutes of ice time despite the second-period scare.