Rangers defenseman K'Andre Miller said the spitting incident that occurred during Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Kings was "completely accidental." The defenseman was ejected in the first period after he spat on NHL veteran Drew Doughty during a scuffle.
In the NHL, spitting results in an automatic match penalty. He also earned a hearing with the NHL's Department of Player Safety for "unsportsmanlike conduct" scheduled for Monday afternoon.
"I have all the respect in the world for Drew Doughty, and what happened was completely accidental," Miller wrote. "I would never intend to do something like that on purpose. It goes against everything I am as a person and player. I felt awful about it, and I am thankful Drew gave me the opportunity to apologize and explain myself in person after the game."
— K'Andre Miller (@kandre_miller) February 27, 2023
After the game, Doughty -- who is playing in his 15th NHL season -- addressed the incident and said he was "shocked" it happened, but also said he wasn't sure if it had been intentional or not. Even so, he admitted the intentions didn't matter at the moment because he felt angry about it.
"I was just shocked, obviously," Doughty told the media. "I don't even know if I said anything to him after, but I just immediately went to the ref to try to get the penalty.
"You don't want to see things like that in this game. I don't know if I've ever seen that. I'm sure it has happened, but not that I've seen. It's unfortunate and whether or not he meant to do it, I have no idea. It's a pretty big loogie on my face, so I was pretty pissed."
Even without Miller, the Rangers pulled off a 5-2 victory on Sunday. They could potentially have to play without him again, as the NHL doesn't take spitting lightly. In 2019, Garnet Hathaway, a forward with the Washington Capitals at the time, was hit with a three-game suspension after spitting on Erick Gudbranson, who was playing with the Anaheim Ducks.
