Bernier on costly penalty: “I wish I could take that play back, but I can’t”

If there was a defining moment of the 2012 Stanley Cup finals, it was Steve Bernier‘s devastating hit on Rob Scuderi in the first period of Game 6.

If you didn’t see the play, you can watch it here:

Scuderi was able to return to the game for the second period, but Bernier was booted from the contest and assessed a five-minute major. The Kings took full advantage of the long man advantage by scoring three power-play goals en route to a 6-1 victory.

A distraught Bernier faced the media after the game to explain what happened.

“I thought he would keep with the puck on his forehand,” Bernier explained after the game. “It’s a fast game and it ended up being a bad play. I didn’t watch the replay of the penalty. I wish I could take that play back, but I can’t. This is extremely hard. It’s been a long playoff run and to finish on that note, it’s not fun. Nothing we can do now.”

Bernier obviously deserves some of the blame for the Devils’ loss. It was a risky move at a time of the game when New Jersey needed to stay out of the sin bin. At the same time, his teammates didn’t do a particularly good job in their efforts to bail him out.

It should also be noted that Bernier didn’t think his hit was worth a major.

The Devils had a great season, and their comeback after falling behind 3-0 in the series was impressive, but when you leave yourself no margin for error, a bad situation can easily turn into a crippling one.

Related: DeBoer says Game 6 loss wasn’t Bernier’s fault