Rouyn-Noranda Huskies centre Patrice Cormier was drafted in the second round in 2008 by the New Jersey Devils and it seems that if he makes it to the NHL one day, he'll have a name players remember.

He's been suspended from the junior hockey league for a vicious hit on Quebec Remparts defensemam Mikael Tam that sent the yong man to hospital and might lead to criminal charges.

Tam was left convulsing on the ice after the elbow to the head, and he left behind a pool of blood when he was carted away in a stretcher.

At the Montreal Canadiens training facility in Brossard, Que., enforcer Georges Laraque called it one of the worst hits he's seen in hockey.

''But one thing I can say about (QMJHL Commissioner) Gilles Courteau is that he's always been good about giving suspensions and it doesn't matter the name on the back (of the player's jersey),'' said Laraque. ''I'm pretty sure he'll be fair with that suspension.

''I'd be surprised if that kid (Cormier) played another game this year. When you look at kids that young, they're not even in the NHL yet and they have their whole future ahead of them and they're shaking on the ice like that. That's pretty scary. It's important to send a message to the youth coming up.''

Ugly

In Vancouver, Canucks forward Tanner Glass called it ''one of the ugliest hits I've ever seen.

''It was premeditated. He had the elbow up good and early. It's disappointing to see a kid that's trying to play a gritty game, to be a tough player to play against, take liberties like that because it always comes back to haunt you.''

His teammate Ryan Johnson said the hit was ''completely uncalled for.

''Whether the kid gets up and plays the rest of the game or goes down and convulses, for me, it's not about the result, it's the act.''

Moncton Wildcats defenceman Brandon Gormley said while the hit was vicious, he didn't think Cormier meant to injure Tam.

"It was shocking to see something like that,'' Gormley said from Windsor on Tuesday. "Obviously (Cormier) didn't mean to do it and you never want to see that happen to any player in any league. "It was an emotional event.''

A statement posted Monday night on the Huskies website said the team wished Tam a quick recovery and return to the ice. It said Cormier was pained by the incident and was following news of Tam's recovery closely. However, it said both Cormier and the team's coach and general manager Andre Tourigny would not comment on the matter.