Comments on: NHL has awkward decision to make after Zdeno Chara’s wicked hit on Max Pacioretty

By: derpdederpdederp

derpdederpdederp — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 16:42:26 +0000

check out the clips he shows. youre “players rarely check near the turnbuckle” argument really holds water after that, eh? sounds like youre one of those hockey “fans” that started watching after the lockout and has unfortunately never seen real hockey been played

By: derpdederpdederp

derpdederpdederp — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 17:01:51 +0000

are you serious? have you never seen a player slam into the stanchion before? just because max got hurt slamming into the stanchion doesnt mean there needs to be a suspension. the 5 and a game chara received was punishment enough. once the nhl starts suspending players for hockey plays that result in an injury they would be setting an unwanted precedent, that being that all hits and hockey plays are subject to punishment if there is a resulting injury. i for one do not want to see that happen

By: derpdederpdederp

derpdederpdederp — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:58:43 +0000

you cant suspend players based on injuries. had this hit occurred anywhere else on the ice it would have been a 2 minute minor and there would be no discussion about suspensions. unfortunately the hit occurred where it did, but you cant blame chara for that. are you suggesting chara back off and not make the play? hockey is too fast to make a decision like that

By: derpdederpdederp

derpdederpdederp — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:55:22 +0000

exactly. the hits the nhl needs to get rid of are matt cooke style try-to-ruin-a-guys-life headshots, not actual hockey plays. this was an interference call at best and the nhl was right to leave charas punishment at the 5 and a game he received on the ice. the nhl would be setting an unwanted precedent if it begins to suspend players based on the resulting injury and not on the actual play

By: bigbear42

bigbear42 — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 19:20:50 +0000

It wasnt dirty, but it sure was late. The puck was long gone by the time the hit occurred. I dont think they will suspend him. I wouldnt be surprised if he but is fined.

By: The Baseball Gods

The Baseball Gods — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 18:23:57 +0000

I’m a neutral observer, I’m a Flyers fan and I dislike both teams just as much. From my standpoint the hit was dirty. I’m not saying that Chara intended to send Pacioretty off on a stretcher, because I don’t think any professional athlete wishes that upon any of their fellow athletes. The one thing that sticks out in my mind is how rare you see somebody check another player at that point of the ice. Players know that the stanchion is there and I think they play it safe most of the time so that nobody slams into the stanchion like that. There was bad blood already between the two and the hit was illegal because the player didn’t have possession of the puck. I don’t think there was intent to injure, but I do think there was intent to make Pacioretty feel some pretty harsh pain. I think Chara needs to at least get a few games of suspension.

By: botlecap

botlecap — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 15:58:03 +0000

I’ll get chewed out for saying this but isn’t Pacioretty also responsible for knowing where he and Chara are on the ice? I’ve seen lots of players make similar plays with enough awareness NOT to try and squeeze through the boards and a checking defender right near the end of a bench. Instead, they take the hit or they try and get by the defender on the inside. Watching the video it seems like Pacioretty needs to be held responsible for choosing to put himself in a whole lot of danger. He had to know a hit was coming – he couldn’t have expected that any defender would just let him skate by and chase down that puck. Seems he thought he was fast enough, and he wasn’t. I think the interference call on the ice made perfect sense, but Chara doesn’t deserve a suspension for that.

By: cshearing

cshearing — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 15:03:38 +0000

So you are saying the only reason a penalty was called was that it was in MTL, and Campbell was there? You realize his son plays on the Bruins and not the Habs, right? I have no problem believing Campbell does not allow his son to influence his decisions in favor of the Bruins (he recuses himself anyhow), but to say that the Habs got the call because of him is some type of twisted logic I cannot follow.

The puck was no where near Pacioretty, and Chara pretty much knew where he was. Maybe not malicious, but reckless at the very least. The penalty was the right call, and he should get 2 games. No, he should not get the season suspension Habs fans want, and he should not get off with nothing as Bruins fans seem to want. Comparing the hit to Cooke’s is also silly, if only because two wrongs do not make a right. I know B’s fans are still sore over that hit, and I agree with you; the NHL dropped the ball on that one. That should not influence this case, however.

By: scwigs

scwigs — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:25:06 +0000

This type of thing happens periodically. And no one freaks out. Why now? Why, indeed, was Chara given the first interference major you and I have ever seen? Bc a Hab got hurt. In Montreal. From contact with a 6′ 8″ defenseman. With Colin Campbell in attendance (doesn’t matter if he doesn’t decide Bruins supplementary discipline, the refs know he’s there). Players rub out their checkees into the boards all the time. Players hit those stanchions a number of times during a season, and no one freaks bc they don’t get hurt. So, you’re telling me people are freaking bc of the fact that somebody got hurt. Hmm. So, illegal play, legit interference call, just not a dirty hit, despite the commentator above and all other breathless pundits rushing to condemn Chara. Yawn. Legit check (beside it being interference), good angle to the boards, not a lateral hit or from behind, refs on the ice told Recchi the hit wasn’t dirty and the major was bc it was a legit penalty upgraded bc an injury resulted. Should be no suspension. Hopefully this time the NHL follows its usual course and doesn’t listen to the pile-on punditry.

By: smoothbravo

smoothbravo — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 14:15:50 +0000

If the NHL wanted to punish players for hurting other players, they should have started with Matt Cooke last year. Both Cooke on Savard and Chara on Max were late check finishes where the contact being made would be legal if the puck was at the victim’s feet (now Cooke’s hit has been subsequently outlawed). I’m all for suspending that type of hit, but you can’t not suspend a guy for laying out Chara’s teammate and then suspend Chara for laying out someone else. That’s the definition of a double standard.

For those arguing that the hits differ because one was called on the ice and one wasn’t, watch them again. Cooke’s hit occured even further after Savard dished the puck than last night’s incident. Besides, the whole purpose of having these decisions come a day later after a phone call is to look at the action rather than just the referees’ reaction to it. The fact that the officials at the Pittsburgh game blew the call on Cooke and the guys in Montreal dinged Chara on a reactionary basis should have no bearing in the suspension decision.

I’d be fine with Chara getting a game or two off if the NHL hadn’t made a completely different precedent, but the league has made their decision and will lose more credibility for not being consistent than for not suspending Chara.

By: joepags

joepags — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 13:11:04 +0000

unfortunate, but, there shouldnt be any punishment for this…. clearly he didnt intend on hurting him… in the heat of play, you cant expect players to take a mili-second and say ” o wait, bad place to check”

By: daveydawg

daveydawg — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 12:51:32 +0000

it wasn’t a hit from behind, there shouldn’t be any discipline. Is there a rule about no checking along benches? I’m not being sarcastic. It’s not chara’s fault that he’s capable of tossing the guy through the boards. If it was from behind that would have been different, but he just angled him off… Chara does not have a rep for this behavior. If Cooke gets a slap on the wrist for the Savard hit (and subsequent hits), chara should get ZERO punishment.

By: 8man

8man — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 12:05:48 +0000

The Habs really wanted that game last night and absolutely owned the Bruins. Boston had a chance to put some real distance in between them and Montreal for the division. Now it’s a lot closer and Chara will miss time. Going down to the last weekend.