Theres a disturbing trend happening this year in the National Hockey League - players are getting suspended for dangerous hits at an alarming level. Wes Hopkins Womens Jersey . Tom Wilson of the Washington Capitals could be getting punished by the NHL Department of Player Safety after his hit Brayden Schenn on Tuesday night. Wilson has a hearing scheduled with the NHL for Thursday at Noon et. If NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan suspends him, that will make 10 suspensions in 11 days and 20 over two-and-a-half months of hockey so far this season. Not to mention the seven suspensions that were handed out in the pre-season. To make matters worse, it seems more players are getting carted off on stretchers this year than ever before. Players are just not getting the idea of what is legal and illegal. Or they just dont care. So what needs to be done for players to get the message and stop these sort of hits? They could make the suspensions harsher. Instead of giving David Clarkson and Dion Phaneuf just two games for their respected incidents, how about sitting them down for five or more contests? Maybe the answer is to go after their wallets. To many NHL players, charging $2,000, $5,000 or even $10,000 is a drop in the bucket. If the league increased fines dramatically (say, six figures?), players would probably be outraged but they might also think twice about hitting a defenceless player from behind. Rules changes could be another option. Modifying the laws of fighting and hitting could work. But players dont seem to be getting the idea as it stands, so any minor tweaks or changes could be irrelevant. Then theres the thought of sidelining an offender for however long it takes for the victim to get cleared by doctors for game action. Now its also possible that little can be done to prevent said injuries and suspensions. Maybe the players have gotten too big, strong and fast to prevent this type of thing from happening. All that considered, what do you think needs to be done to prevent the rapid rate of dangerous hits in the NHL? As always, its Your! Call. Dallas Goedert Eagles Jersey . While coach Doc Rivers high-fived fans and pumped his fist at the crowd, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul quietly congratulated each other. JJ Arcega-Whiteside Youth Jersey . -- Canadian womens amateur golf champion Brooke Henderson is a little less starstruck as she prepares for her second career appearance at an LPGA Tour major event. http://www.theeaglesshoponline.com/Youth-Tommy-Mcdonald-Eagles-Jersey/ . The Gatineau Olympiques head coach will lead Canada in its quest to end its gold medal drought at the 2015 world junior hockey championship held in Montreal and Toronto at the end of this year.KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Royals agreed to a $32 million, four-year contract with left-hander Jason Vargas on Thursday, trying to fill the void in their rotation created by Ervin Santanas free agency. Vargas was 9-8 with a 4.02 ERA in 24 starts for the Angels last season. He was 6-4 with a 3.65 ERA before going on the disabled list with a blood clot in his arm that required surgery. Kansas City was searching for a veteran to replace Santana, another former Angels pitcher who rediscovered himself in Kansas City. Santana went 9-10 with a 3.24 ERA last season, driving up his price in free agency to the point where the Royals are unlikely to sign him. "Our medical team felt very comfortable, our scouting judgment was very sound, with the length of the contract as well. It all kind of lined up together," general manager Dayton Moore said. "We felt very confident and secure in making him a Royal." Vargas, a soft-tossing lefty who turns 31 in February, gets $7 million next season, $8.5 million in each of the following two years and $8 million in 2017. He had shown a propensity for giving up home runs, but that should be mitigated by cavernous Kauffman Stadium. That was the case with Santana, who also allowed homers by the bushel in Los Angeles before getting things under control in Kansas City. "The biggest thing for me was being in a place where I knew I would be at for a significant amount of time, and with an organization where I felt comfortable," Vargas said, "and I believed in what theyre doing and continuing to get better, and Kansas City was definitely at the top of that list going into the off-season." Vargas will be joining a club that finished 86-76 last season, its best finish since 1989, and was in contention for a playoff berth until the final weeks of the season. "What excited me about the team is how Ive seen the team grow and progress a lot over the last four or five years," Vargas said. "Their defence is spectacular and Im just hoping I can be a piece of the puzzle that helps move us forward." The Royals designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment to make room on thee 40-man roster. Andre Dillard Womens Jersey. Vargas isnt the sort of splashy signing that will make Royals fans salivate, but he does solidify the back end of whats expected to be a young rotation. James Shields returns next season as their clear-cut ace and Jeremy Guthrie provides a dependable No. 2 starter. Danny Duffy is a near-lock to make the rotation out of spring training after he worked his way back from Tommy John surgery this past season, leaving one more spot in the rotation up for grabs among a handful of in-house candidates. Among those would could land the fifth spot are Wade Davis, Luke Hochevar and Will Smith -- all former starters who spent time last season in the bullpen -- and hard-throwing right-hander Yordano Ventura, who made his big league debut last season and dazzled in three September starts. Most people within the organization believe that Ventura will be in the rotation at some point next season, even if he doesnt earn a spot in spring training. Theres also a chance that Kyle Zimmer, their former first-round pick, will be ready at some point next season. Zimmer finished last season at Double-A Northwest Arkansas. "Theres still ways we can improve our team, through the rotation, trying to add another bat, we feel like we have some quality young pitchers who are going to be competing for spots," Moore said. "Theres still a lot of opportunity out there to improve our starting pitching." Vargas, who missed the 2008 season with a torn labrum in his hip, is 51-58 with a 4.30 ERA in parts of eight seasons spent with the Marlins, Mets, Mariners and Angels. His best season came two years ago, when he went 14-11 with a 3.85 ERA in 33 starts for Seattle. If nothing else, Vargas should be able to eat innings. He was limited to 150 by his surgery last season, but went over 200 innings each of his final two seasons with the Mariners. "You try to get 200 innings out of your starters and Jason has been able to do that," Moore said. "Hes been one of the more consistent pitchers in all of baseball over the last few years, and we feel like hes right in the prime of his career." ' ' '