Mac's (Gary Sinise) right-hand woman, Det. Stella Bonasera, has been known to go all fearless Rambo in past seasons of 'CSI:NY' (Wed., 10PM ET on CBS). Last night she took things to another level. While scoping out a bad guy's lair, the baddie attacked, throwing her into a swimming pool. A major underwater scuffle ensued, with Stella (played by Melina Kanakaredes, who does all her own stunts) just out of reach for the gun that would have put an end to it. When choking her didn't work, he proceeded to bash her head against the pool ledge.

Det. Don Flack (Eddie Cahill) stormed in and was able to shoot the bad guy in the leg. But Don had bigger problems -- spying her floating body, blood dripping from her mouth. Was he too late?

Watch the video after the jump.

Question: Is Craig T. Nelson being cast on CSI: NY just another big star guest turn or could it be something more important? We don't know the answer yet, but I suspect that booking the Emmy-award winning TV star for three episodes could be a lot more significant than just pumping up the ratings during February sweeps with a meaty story arc.

What we do know is that the popular actor will be on CSI: NY as an antagonist to Gary Sinise's character. Nelson will play Robert Parker, a high profile, powerful publisher who has an ax to grind with Mac Taylor.

To say they're going to butt heads is an educated guess, but I think that's the direction they're going. You can see Parker using his media outlets to attack Mac and his department, you know, those great New York tabloid headlines.