Wheel O’
Justice! That’s what we like to call it over in real-world hockey while we
scoff at the “discipline” given by Ol’ Shanaban. Pretty fitting since the “discipline”
given tends to be random, rigged, and not very thought out like the Department
of Player Safety tries to act like it is. Supplementary discipline is a matter
of pick-and-choose between NHL super-stars and no-names, and by that I mean the
big-shots get away with everything and the looked-over players are well…looked
over. Don’t believe me? Let’s take a look at some examples from the past few
seasons:
Famous captain of the Stanley Cup
champs, Dustin Brown of the LA Kings, gave multiple controversial hits this
season alone and received only one suspension, over a blatant elbow to the face
of Minnesota Wild Jason Pominville. Even that suspension was a joke in itself
as it was only two games. “No history” was the reasoning behind the two game
length, even though just the game before the Department of Player Safety had
said Brown was “very close” to a phone call for an elbow given in that game.
And Brown was back at it again when
that suspension was over, throwing knee and
an elbow at St. Louis Blues Jaden Schwartz his first game back off the
suspension. But, look at this! No hearing. Out of all the controversial hits
that were ignored, the one after the suspension was as well. Big shock there.
Did we really expect a Stanley Cup champ to get more than one hearing this
year? Pssh, no way! He can do no wrong! I mean look, he won a cup!
And let’s take a look at victim of
multiple hits, Jared Spurgeon of the Minnesota Wild. Man that boy has taken a
beating. How many suspensions have been called in his favor though? I’ll gladly
report a whopping 0! Remember that boarding hit from behind from Colorado
Avalanche player Cody McLeod? Neither does Shanahan! And that was just one hit
that was overlooked, there are plenty more, all of which were glanced over. While
Spurgeon may be a big player to the Wild, he’s a virtual no-name to the NHL,
and according to the Department of Player Safety, that means it’s perfectly
okay to ignore an illegal hit on him.
There’s the black-and-white of it,
and the reason behind everyone giving an eye-roll to every “supplementary
discipline” issued by Shanahan. Super-stars get off scotch-free with illegal
hits while the no-names suffer. And what’s wrong with this? It’s the Department
of Player Safety; this should be an
unbiased, fair organization designed to help keep players safe, all of them. After
witnessing Boston Bruin Marc Savard injury that has practically ended his
career, you see why the Department of Player Safety exists, to prevent players
from delivering those kinds of illegal hits, especially those to the head. So,
if we’re trying to keep players safe here, why are we ignoring so many of the
dangerous hits given, and letting players suffer? That’s a question Shanahan
will have to answer.
Even worse than the lack of
discipline given, is the sorry excuse of “discipline” that is issued. Take for example this Torres case. What is now his
fourth suspension has further exposed the embarrassment that is Shanahan. The
last suspension issued due to the head shot on Chicago Blackhawk Marian Hossa,
was originally 25 games, shortened to 21 on appeal. Comparatively this new
suspension issued is enough to laugh about, being a minimum of 3 games, and a
max of 6. The hit on Stoll, when reviewed, did not seem as violent as the one
delivered on Hossa, but the fact that Torres is a repeat offender required
above average discipline. But a minimum of 3 games? “First time offender”
Taylor Hall received a 2 game suspension for his knee on Cal Clutterbuck,
ignoring the boarding that occurred in the AHL when Hall was responsible for
the broken clavicle of Aeros defenseman Jonas Brodin. So just one game more
than a “first time offender” for a player who is now on his fourth suspension? This
is just an embarrassment. Stoll was injured, did not return, and is out for an unpredictable
amount of time, and Torres is left with nothing but a slap on the wrist. At
this rate, it might just take another injury like Marc Savard’s for the Department
of Player Safety to issue real discipline and give real justice to players
injured.
All this being said, how determine
a suspension based on an illegal/questionable hit is a post for another day.
The matter at hand right now is player safety and the lack of real punishment
given for those who have intentionally injured fellow NHL players. Hockey is a
fast, brutal game, but there’s no reason for players to get out of hand and
seriously injure each other, possibly ending someone’s career. The Department
of Player Safety and their head Brendan Shanahan have been at fault for very
poor decision making lately, and players are not getting the discipline they
deserve, leaving the injured without any form of justice. This is unacceptable and
perhaps the Department needs to review themselves the same way they review
controversial hits. From myself, fellow fans, and players wronged throughout
the league, we say one thing:
Stop letting these things go. Shanahan,
do your job.
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