46 replies to this topic

[mouse]

If Torres doesn't leave his feet, there's no head contact, and we wouldn't even be talking about it. It wouldn't even be borderline. It's 100% Torres fault and it's a dirty hit.

That's the key thing. He clearly left his feet, and the only reason to do that is to target the head. That makes intent to injure obvious. When a 5 time offender does that, it needs to get penalized.

[mouse]

In those comparison videos, Stevens didn't leave his feet, Torres did. If Torres didn't leave his feet, it's a clean hit.

This. I keep hearing about how Stevens couldn't survive in the new NHL. That's bull. Stevens was a supremely gifted skater who consistently laid people out without breaking any rules. With the current rules, Stevens would have adjusted, and continued to hit. Scrubs who don't know how to skate/hit break the rules. Stevens could have raised plenty of hell, just like Duncan Keith and Shea Weber (I know both have a major offense in the same month, but still).

[njdevsftw]

Even if you do get a clean KO hit in a fist fight, which happens once every leap year in hockey fights, there's no way that can even compare to the potential damage a 240lbs man moving at high speed straight towards you and then JUMPING up towards your head with a shoulder/elbow can inflict. In a hockey fight the worst thing that can probably happen is hitting your head on the ice when falling down. In the case of these unexpected open-ice hits, the impact alone can be very dangerous before you add the fact that your head could be propelled with significant speed towards the ice as well.

These type of hits towards the head should be completely removed from hockey, as should fighting.


Triumph is absolutely spot on right on every point. And while they need to be more consistent on their suspensions, things are certainly moving in the right direction.

Edited by njdevsftw, 21 April 2012 - 07:34 PM.

[mouse]

The NHL is an emotional, passion driven game. Players are always on the edge and sometimes their emotions get the best of them. If the NHL continues to chip away at the passion driving the sport...it's going to end up shooting itself right in the wallet. Because nobody wants sterile no contact ping pong on ice.

I don't know if that's true anymore. The people who like the physical stuff the most are the die hards, who are going to show up anyway. The league has grown every year since the devastating lockout, with the new rules in place. Casual fans like the sport the way it is now.

Also, since the new concussion data has come out, football has become less popular while softer sports like baseball have become more popular, especially at the high school level. While we may not be seeing the effects now, 10 years from now, the NFL may be in trouble. Seeming safer is smart for the NHL.

The thing that worries me is the consistency of the calls. Three big things that stand out to me: I can see Torres getting 25 compared to Hagelin getting 3 based off reasons already mentioned. But Weber smashing Zetterberg's head against the boards getting nothing? Outrageous. Potentially more dangerous than these two hits. We all heard the talk about Hags potentially getting more games than he should have since Alfie got hurt, which is another flaw.

And this is the biggest issue.

[halfsharkalligatorhalfman]

Torres got a huge suspension in my opinion because of three factors that I don't think should be included in determining suspension length

1. The player he hit got seriously injured
2. The player he hit was Marian Hossa, one of the best players in hockey
3. He hit this player while the NHL was weathering a sh!t storm of bad publicity from multiple supension/incidents (Asham, Bitz, Neal, Weber, etc)

Even for a repeat offender like Torres, I don't see how that hit gets 10+ games if not for those three things. I agree with the premise that the league needs to do what it can to limit head shots due to the advances we've made in studying concussions/CTE, but to do this punishment now, for these reasons is not fair to Torres.

They made an example out of Torres. The NHLPA has a legitimate grievance to make on his part I think, especially if Phoenix is eliminated soon.

Edit: Just today, an NFL player committed suicide due to CTE/Brain Trauma from concussions
http://sports.yahoo....-025009388.html

It's a serious issue, not part of the "pussification" of the sport

Edited by halfsharkalligatorhalfman, 22 April 2012 - 10:45 AM.

[Triumph]

Torres got a huge suspension in my opinion because of three factors that I don't think should be included in determining suspension length

1. The player he hit got seriously injured
2. The player he hit was Marian Hossa, one of the best players in hockey
3. He hit this player while the NHL was weathering a sh!t storm of bad publicity from multiple supension/incidents (Asham, Bitz, Neal, Weber, etc)

Even for a repeat offender like Torres, I don't see how that hit gets 10+ games if not for those three things. I agree with the premise that the league needs to do what it can to limit head shots due to the advances we've made in studying concussions/CTE, but to do this punishment now, for these reasons is not fair to Torres.

They made an example out of Torres. The NHLPA has a legitimate grievance to make on his part I think, especially if Phoenix is eliminated soon.

Edit: Just today, an NFL player committed suicide due to CTE/Brain Trauma from concussions
http://sports.yahoo....-025009388.html

It's a serious issue, not part of the "pussification" of the sport

Injury, like it or not, is part of the NHL's decision to suspend people. And I do think that in the playoffs, mediocre/bad players hitting good players has to be taken into account at least a little. With how teams have to respond to concussion issues, a big hit can easily send a star player out for a series whereas in the past, that player probably would've played through the problem.

[mouse]

1. The player he hit got seriously injured
2. The player he hit was Marian Hossa, one of the best players in hockey

I have no problem with these issues bing taken into consideration. In a long series, it's too easy to send a goon out in one of the early games to try to injure someone. If that good stands to lose a ton of money and the right to play, at least he thinks twice. I know something black and white doesn't happen that often, but even in a play like this one, Phoenix still comes out ahead for this series. They will have a much easier time replacing Torres than Chicago will replacing Hossa.