Boston Bruins forward Zac Rinaldo has been issued a five-game suspension from the NHL's Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head of Tampa Bay Lightning center Cedric Paquette.

The NHL cited Rinaldo's lengthy suspension history, and ultimately deemed that Paquette's head - the principal point of contact - was avoidable in his attempt to separate the Lightning center from the puck.

Rinaldo has now accrued 19 games in suspension from four separate incidents in his NHL career, as Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe points out.

He will forfeit nearly $52,000 as a result of his latest ban.

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