NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell spoke with rookie forward Steve Downie, but decided not to hit the Flyers forward with a ban for sucker-punching Toronto Maple Leafs forward Jason Blake.

Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said he and Downie spoke to Campbell after the incident in Philadelphia's 3-2 win in Toronto on Saturday night.

Philadelphia Flyers forward Steve Downie will not be suspended by the NHL for his suckerpunch on Leafs veteran Jason Blake.
(Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press)

"We had a conversation with Mr. Campbell and that's it. The rest will be between the league, the Flyers and Steve," Holmgren said in the Philadelphia Inquirer. "It was a good talk.

"It's Steve's [fourth] NHL game. He's walking a fine line there, which is basically what he was told. My conversation with Steve was a little harsher than Colin Campbell's."

Downie, a 20-year-old native of Newmarket, Ont., punched Blake in the eye while the veteran forward was being held by a linesman.

Downie, who scored his first NHL goal in the first period, was assessed a double minor penalty on the play, and the Leafs scored on the ensuing power play.

"I took a penalty that hurt the team and I can't do that," Downie told the Inquirer, admitting he has been put on notice by the league. "There's a fine line you've got to follow and I crossed it again. I got to learn."

This is not the first time this season Downie has caused controversy with his questionable actions on the ice.

He was slapped with a 20-game suspension after he left his feet and hit Dean McAmmond of the Ottawa Senators in the head during a pre-season game in September.

At the time, Downie was trying to crack the Philadelphia lineup in his first pro season, having been drafted by the club in the first round of the 2005 NHL entry draft.