Everyone's talking about the Chara hit on Pacioretty. We have our opinions and we've heard what the pundits have to say but we're curious to see what you think.
We honestly believe that if it wasn't Chara, it if was Steve Ott or Chris Neil who shoved Pacioretty into the turnbuckle, that player would have been suspended. You know it and we know it. We aren't saying a ten-game suspension but we were expecting at least two games.
That's not a lot but it's enough to send a message that says, "Be careful when hitting someone. Watch what you're doing and maybe you wouldn't have hurt a player." That's all a two-gamer says and that's all we are asking for. We think that would have been fair.
We know that Chara is not a dirty player but he has to be extra-careful because of how large he is. The size difference between Pacioretty and Chara is so much that it definitely made a difference in how serious the injury was. He should be in control of his body and his strength and should know what he is doing.
Here's what TSN says...link and another link.
Max Pacioretty had a few strong words for the way that the league handled the hit.
Even Joe Thornton had something to say. He claims that they Bruins get favorable rulings from the league. It's an interesting article.
What do you think about this polarizing issue?
Other Injuries
- Sam Gagner had tendon surgery in his hand and his season is over.
- Taylor Hall gave himself a high ankle sprain by fighting Derek Dorsett and is out for the remainder of the season as well.
- The Blues also decided to tell David Perron that his season is done because of all the injuries that he has suffered this season. Such a shame.
- The Blues also lost Alex Steen (high ankle sprain) and Barret Jackman (broken index finger) for 4-to-6 weeks. They don't look like they're in good shape...
- Brent Sopel is out indefinitely for the Canadiens (after they just traded for him) with a broken hand.
- Pavel Kubina was suspended for three games for his hit to the head to the Blackhawks' Dave Bolland. Deservedly so, sir.
The Penguins don't need Crosby or Malkin to win. Of course their presence makes it a hell of a lot easier to win.
7 comments:
I might have to agree with Jumbo Joe's conspiracy theories here, not only is Colin Campbell's son on the team, there was an article in the Globe pointing out that the owner of the Bruins is the one who just gave Bettman a new five year contract. It's not smelling too good.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/bettman-holds-new-contract-and-all-the-cards/article1938061/
@MelTing:
That's an interesting article and it does not smell too good for Bettman or the league. You think they would be smarter with this.
What I want to know is what the league is going to do next time someone with a rep/history runs a guy into the turnbuckle? They're not going to able to suspened him, not after this. Another thing I want to know is what happens the next time a player with no history does something questionable? They are still going to say "he has no history" because he's never been suspended. I think he should have been given something to let everyone know these kinds of hits will not be tolerated.
What pisses me off the most about this situation is the inconsistency the league shows when disciplining players. "If you cause a player to be injured, then you have to be responsible for the play that you're involved in, if there's any carelessness or recklessness in it." The above quote is from the mouth of Colin Campbell himself. Is it just me, or did he not only contadict the shit out of himself but also showed his hypocrisy by not suspending Chara? Does this mean Jumbo's on to something with his conspiracy theory?
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In much lighter news...to combat the boredom of being injured both Taylor Hall (@hallsy04) & Ryan Whitney (ryanwhitney6) have joined the Twitter. Other hockey players that have recently joined are Krys Brach (@krysbarch), Brad Richards (@BRichards_1991) & Patrick Sharp (@partick10sharp). Happy tweeting :o)
EDIT: Oopsys! What I ment to type was
What I want to know is what the league is going to do next time someone with a rep/history runs a guy into the turnbuckle & causes a major injury?
That hit made my stomach churn, I'm amazed Chara didn't get a suspension and I can't believe the punishments are left up to one person to decide.
In Australia the national sports have an independent tribunal to hand out the punishments etc. where no favour or special treatment is shown to anyone including the superstars. It's a much fairer system.
The NHL should get with this program asap.
I've been bleating about how corrupt the NHL is forever - on a lot of fronts, not just regarding discipline - and this is just more pathetic proof. The players and the NHLPA need to smarten up and demand better. It's so easy to be casual/non-committal about the situation when you're caught up in the game and the season's crazy schedule, when you're working out and traveling such that you have practically no time to yourself or for anything besides the game, when you have fat endorsements, when your agent is blowing smoke up your ass, when your friends and family are telling you how awesome you are and you still feel majorly obligated to thank them for all their support, when your franchise is guilting you into feeling like they're doing you a huge favor to even have you on their roster, etc. etc. etc. Enough. Juggle those balls, boys. Grow 'em and juggle 'em.
I grew up with the Wild West hockey--where those kind of hits were common--but players are just too fast and too huge these days for that kind of shenanagans. That hit was scary scary scary and sure you can argue it's the glass/turnbuckle/not having your head on a swivel (DRINK!) but there's no getting around the lack of consistency on rulings. You see how long it's taking Sid to get his bearings and it's only a matter of time before someone has irreparable damage.
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