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Max Pacioretty speaks out on Chara hit, lack of punishment: “I am disgusted with the league”

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We’ve heard from just about everyone concerning the hit taken by Montreal’s Max Pacioretty from Boston’s Zdeno Chara. We’ve heard from Chara, we’ve heard from the Canadiens players, we’ve heard from the NHL when they didn’t fine or suspend Chara, and we’ve heard nothing controversial from Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier. We’ve even heard from Air Canada as they’re threatening to withdraw their sponsorship of the NHL in the wake of this incident.

Everyone’s had their say on this except for Pacioretty himself until tonight.

TSN’s Bob McKenzie was able to speak with Pacioretty in the Montreal hospital he’s being observed at after suffering a broken vertebra and a severe concussion from the hit he took from Chara. In the past with controversial hits, we’ve seen NHL players either express a very reasoned and tactful sentiment or just say nothing at all about what’s happened. Pacioretty did not hold back on his feelings regarding both Chara and the hit and the NHL for not taking action against him.

On the hit itself from Chara, Pacioretty feels the hit was dirty and that Chara was trying to hurt him.

“I heard (Chara) said he didn’t mean to do it. I felt he did mean to do it. I would feel better if he said he made a mistake and that he was sorry for doing that, I could forgive that, but I guess he’s talking about how I jumped up or something.”

“I believe he was trying to guide my head into the turnbuckle. We all know where the turnbuckle is. It wasn’t a head shot like a lot of head shots we see but I do feel he targeted my head into the turnbuckle.”


As for the NHL, Pacioretty saved his harshest criticism for the league.

“I am upset and disgusted that the league didn’t think enough of (the hit) to suspend him,” Pacioretty told TSN. “I’m not mad for myself, I’m mad because if other players see a hit like that and think it’s okay, they won’t be suspended, then other players will get hurt like I got hurt.

“It’s been an emotional day. I saw the video for the first time this morning. You see the hit, I’ve got a fractured vertebrae, I’m in hospital and I thought the league would do something, a little something,” said Pacioretty.

“I’m not talking a big number, I don’t know, one game, two games, three games...whatever, but something to show that it’s not right.”


You can’t fault Pacioretty for being angry at all. I think if it was any of us who were put in that position we’d be angry as well. After all, Pacioretty isn’t sure if he’ll be able to come back from this. Broken vertebra and a severe concussion are two horrible injuries to try and bounce back from. We’ve seen players miss weeks of action with mild or light concussions just this season alone, never mind a severe one.

His words on this matter, however, will do nothing to calm the hot tempers raging in Montreal and elsewhere around the league over this hit. After all, when the victim of the hit is this angry about everything involving the play, it says a lot about where the respect level is for the players off the ice as much as it does on it.

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