First lets state that the Jamie Lagenbrunner boarding to the head shot that was not called led to Niklas Wallin, led Wallin to leave the game and not come back. Not only that but Wallin is hurt because of this hit which was not called a penalty.

And here lye’s the problem. Enforcement of existing rules. You get a no call on a dirty cheap shot hit, and then get a call later in the game on a hit that never fully contacted Ott. Should it have been a penalty YES, but so should have the Lagenbrunner hit as well. And there is the problem, referees not enforcing existing rules, or referees not consistently calling penalties. The bottom line is a penalty is a penalty regardless of the team the player or the time the penalty occurs, or the situation in the game. Call the penalties consistently and you would see a cut down on head shots. But to say that an attempt to hit a player in the head, is more serious then a boarding where a player strikes is head, and is hurt is just as bad. And what kind of message does it send to players. Inconsistency is what it sends.