The Boston Bruins will be without one of their best defensemen when they hit the ice for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, which can be streamed on fuboTV (Try for free). 

The NHL's Department of Player Safety announced the one-game suspension for Charlie McAvoy on Tuesday. The suspension comes as a result of a hit McAvoy threw on Columbus Blue Jackets forward Josh Anderson during Game 6. As Anderson was attempting to gain the Bruins' zone and battling with Zdeno Chara, McAvoy delivered a high hit to Anderson's head.

The 21-year-old Bruins defenseman was given a two-minute minor for an illegal check to the head and Anderson briefly left the game before returning. Boston won the game 3-0, clinching the series and punching their ticket to the ECF. In the handshake line after Game 6, Anderson and McAvoy had an amicable meeting with seemingly no hard feelings carrying over. 

When asked about what was said in the meeting, McAvoy wouldn't reveal the details.

"That's between me and him," McAvoy said. "We went at it pretty good this series. I have a lot of respect for him. He plays the game as hard as anyone. It was good to see him back out there."

McAvoy went on to say he was just trying to make a "hockey play" and deliver a check on Anderson. It was announced after the game that he would face a hearing with the league's Player Safety division to determine supplemental discipline. 

The DoPS ruled that McAvoy made significant, forceful head contact where it was avoidable before announcing that he had been suspended for one playoff game. It's McAvoy's first run-in with Player Safety in his two-year NHL career.

In 13 games beside Zdeno Chara on the Bruins' top defensive pairing, McAvoy has a goal and five assists while averaging nearly 25 minutes of time on ice this postseason.