Senators bracing for discipline following Tyler Kleven's nasty cross-check on Kraken's Jared McCann

Officials hit Kleven with a five-minute major for cross-checking and a game misconduct, turning a tense moment into a full-on storyline. ESPN's event log also tagged a slashing penalty on the same sequence.

It happened in Ottawa's 7-4 road win over the Seattle Kraken, a game that already had plenty of swing and snarl.

Kleven is 24, a 2020 second-round pick, 44th overall, drafted by the Senators. Nights like this are how reputations get built, fairly or not.

The irony is he was also on the scoresheet earlier, scoring in the first period as Ottawa pushed the pace.

Here's the clip that set the timeline on fire.

Jared McCann isn't a fringe name either, he's sitting at 16-17-33 in 37 games this season. Getting him in a vulnerable spot is how majors turn into hearings.

Ottawa still banked two points and moved to 31-22-9, but you could feel the bench management shift the second Kleven was gone.

When a left-shot defender gets tossed, everyone's minutes jump, and your pairings get messy fast, especially protecting a lead. That is where one ugly decision can steal momentum from an otherwise strong night.

Sens fans will love the edge, but they'll hate the risk, because this team cannot afford self-inflicted drama in March.

Seattle, now 29-24-9, had to chase the game and never really got the comeback push it wanted. Still, the man advantage time created by that major can change the feel of a third period.

If the league takes a longer look, Ottawa's blue line depth gets tested immediately, not eventually. That matters with Vancouver next on Monday.

Kleven's contract path matters too, because young defenders with bite are valuable, but availability is the first ability. He's listed with a cap hit that rises to $1.6M through 2026-27, and he's an RFA after.

The Senators won the game, but this clip will travel farther than any one goal. Next week's real test is whether Ottawa keeps the points, and avoids the extra punishment.