Always liked Brad Marchand, good Acadian (American readers, think "Cajun") boy from around Halifax NS. In 2018, when he was playing for the Boston Bruins, he got into hot water for licking Tampa Bay's Ryan Callahan during a heated playoff match. In this first video he explains why he did that.
He got told, really told, by the NHL not to do that kind of thing, lest people think hockey was becoming as gay as soccer. But no such warning could quell or abate the famous Marchand temper, which found other ways to express itself.
Fast forward to this past Saturday night, when the veteran Marchand, now with the Florida Panthers, absolutely loses it after a crosscheck from behind by your typical chicken Swede (h/t Don Cherry for that phrase) Rasmus Dahlin, in the match between the Panthers and Buffalo Sabres.
Dahlin turtled, afraid to take the consequences of poking the bear, and Marchand pounces on him, yanks off his (Dahlin's) helmet, then tears it apart while sitting in the sin bin.
Cost to Dahlin (fine imposed by the NHL Dept. of Player Safety), $5000. Entertainment value: priceless! Says Poor Len Canayen, "Wouldn't he look great in a Habs sweater?!"
Poor Len here with a recommendation for all hockey fans, especially now that we're getting to the late stages of the NHL playoffs. This season I started watching Shannon Skanes, The Hockey Guy, on YouTube. He's also on Instagram, Twitter (follow the link) and Spotify. He's getting close to 100,000 subscribers (one being moi) on his YouTube channel, because he talks sensibly and independently (not a shill for the NHL) about the best of all sports.
As I was watching THG's review of last night's Columbus vs Boston game (Boston won, 3-0 and goes on to the NHL Eastern Conference final vs the Carolina Hurricanes), I got to thinking about where I've seen that face before. Using sophisticated facial recognition software, I came up with the answer, which you see at right. Shannon's nose isn't quite that bulbous -- guess he's not a drinker -- but if you picture W.C. Fields in a baseball/hockey cap, the resemblance would be striking!
As nearly as I can figure out, Mr Skanes is a Canuck, based somewhere near Vancouver. He likes the Vancouver Canucks, but also the Dallas Stars and Boston Bruins, whom he will be cheering for (he says today) to beat the Bunch of Jerks, as Don Cherry famously called the Hurricanes. THG doesn't like the Canadiens so much, but he does pay attention to them, as indeed he does with every other team in the NHL. That's why I like his videos. (I'm also impressed that he puts up three or four videos every day, 24/7 -- an output that Walt can only dream of!)
To explain why I like THG, even though he doesn't like "Canada's Team" so much, I'm reposting his video of April 24th in which he explains "How the Canadiens Missed the 2019 Playoffs". Quote: "Honestly, they are the best team that missed the playoffs. They are trending up."
Footnote: If you can't figure out how come I think Shannon looks like W.C. Fields, hit "pause" immediately after starting to play. I should also point out that Shannon and his other half love cats; one of the beasts is featured for about three minutes. And he has an amazing collection of hockey sweaters -- not "jerseys" but "hockey sweaters"!
Poor Len `ere. Last night I was watching the Boston v Columbus game on Hockey Night in Canada, and I got to thinking about that Don Cherry (aka Donless Cherry -- that's what Ron Maclean calls him), who was all dressed up for May the 4th (geddit?) and talking about "When I had the Bruins and Bobby Orr..." And I got to thinking, why isn't Don Cherry in the National Hockey League Hall of Fame?!
Wikipedia calls Donald Stewart Cherry (born 5 February 1934) "a Canadian ice hockey commentator". He is more than that. He is THE Canadian ice hockey commentator. Along with Ron Maclean, he co-hosts the "Coach's Corner" intermission segment on Hockey Night in Canada, the longest-running show on Canadian TV. He is a Canadian icon, known for his outspoken manner, his nationalistic opinions [How does he get away with it, nowadays? Ed.] and his flamboyant dress (see pic). Those Edwardian shirt collars must be damn uncomfortable.
Don toiled for years with the AHL Rochester Americans, and was called up for one (1) game with the Boston Bruins, the only game he ever played in the NHL. He went on to coach the big bad Bruins for five seasons, during which he had the good fortune to have on the team Bobby Orr, one of othe greatest -- Don says THE greatest -- defencemen ever to play the game. He never lets us forget it (see above).
Mr Cherry was voted the seventh greatest Canadian on a CBC television special called, errr, The Greatest Canadian (duh). In March 2010, his life was dramatized in a two-part made-for-TV movie, Keep Your Head Up, Kid: The Don Cherry Story, based on a script written by his son, Timothy Cherry. In March 2012, CBC aired a sequel, The Wrath of Grapes: The Don Cherry Story II. And yet the selectors for the NHL Hall of Fame keep passing over him. I can't understand it. Don Cherry IS famous, for:
- coaching Bobby Orr (see above)
- being a Canadian nationalist
- disliking European-born players, especially "chicken Swedes"
- loving Canadian guys in uniform: soldiers, cops and hockey player
- owning a succession of white bull terriers, all named "Blue"
- turning down an offer of appointment to the Canadian Senate
- other stuff
But what Don is most famous for, IMHO, is something that happened forty years and five days ago, on the evening of 10 May 1979. The Bruins were playing in the seventh game of the NHL Stanley Cup semi-finals against arch-enemies, the Montréal Canadiens. The series was tied 3 games each, and the winner of the 7th game would go on to play for Lord Stanley's silverware. Boston was ahead 3-1 going into the third period and looked to be on the verge of victory. The Habs responded with goals from Mark Napier and Guy Lapointe to tie the game. With just under four minutes to play, Rick Middleton managed to bounce a puck off the arm of goaltender Ken Dryden and into the net to take a 4-3 lead. Here's what happened next.
With only 2:34 to go, the Bruins were caught on a sloppy line change -- too many men on the ice... two-minute penalty! Changing the lines is the coach's responsibility, so, as Don Cherry later told the Grope and Flail, "It was my fault. The guy couldn't have heard me yell. I grabbed two other guys trying to go over the boards. That would have made eight on the ice. Might as well have let them go."
Not wasting an opportunity, Montréal coach Scotty Bowman put out his elite power-play unit: Guy Lafleur, Larry Robinson, Serge Savard, Steve Shutt and Jacques Lemaire. Unlike Don Cherry, all five players are in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Lafleur scored the a beauty, beating Gilles Gilbert on the short side, to tie the game at 4-4. In the overtime that ensured, les Glorieux went on to win. They would then beat the New York Rangers to win yet another Stanley Cup.
Later that May, Bruins GM Harry Sinden fired Don Cherry. But here's the thing. To this day, a clip of Don responding to the derision of the Montréal crowd is still included in the intro to every "Coach's Corner". He's a classy guy, an asset to the game and to Canada, and should damn well be in the Hall of Fame, EH!
Cazart! Should have seen it coming. I (Poor Len) was watching the Montréal Canadiens get blanked by the Boston Bruins on Sunday night, and thought to myself, "Are these guys trying to get [Michel] Therrien fired?"
Well of course they were! Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, it appears to me that the team was hammering the final nail into the coffin that they began building the night Therrien yanked Carey Price after a couple of soft goals, and get the Stare Seen Across Canada. Et maintenant, pour Michelle, c'est terminé.
The lack of cordial relations between Michel Therrien and some of his players has been the subject of discussion before, notably last year when Habs GM Marc Bergevin was forced to choose between the coach and the "transcendant defenceman" (Dave Stubbs' phrase -- where's Dave now?), and, predictably, chose Therrien. Subban didn't have a lot of friends in the room.
With Price, and (to a lesser extent) Max Pacioretty, it's a different story. Both are genuine team leaders on the ice and in the dressing room, one by virtue of the "C" on his chest, the other by being, on many nights, the best player on the ice. As Price goes, so goes the team. And after an amazing start in October and November, Price... and the Habs... have been going steadily downhill. Price is untouchable, and rightly so, so... adieu Michel!
The funny thing is that this same thing happened before, in 2003. Therrien had coached le CH for three or so mediocre years, so he was given the boot and Julien brought in to replace him. Three years later, then-GM Bob Gainey gave the other boot to Julien and went in behind the bench himself, not that it did any good. I hope we're not going to go through this every 14 years!
As for Michel Therrien, my guess (since I missed this week's shocker) is that he'll wind up with the Las Vegas Golden Knights, due to join the NHL next year as Gary Bitchman's craze for promoting hockey in the desert continues unabated. All the talk last week, when Julien was fired, was that he'd be a perfect fit for Vegas. Since Julien and Therrien have the same physique, the same temperament and are both French-Canadians, Therrien should do just fine in Sin City. American fans won't even be able to tell the difference. Lifetime pct .986.
À voir (to see!): This week's edition of the HI/O show, with Montreal Gazette sportswriter Pat Hickey, and two former CH bruisers: Knucks Nilan and Georges Laraque. [That guy -- Laraque -- is HUGE! Too bad he wasn't really mean. Ed.]
On May 2nd, Poor Len Canayen asked the provocative question, "Is P.K. Subban a 'nigger'?". Len's point was that if someone doesn't want to be called a "nigger", he shouldn't act like one. Follow Hussesin Obama's example and act white!
Well, OK, you know what we mean. P.K. really needs to cut out the showboating and high-fivin', the prancing and dancing and carrying on like an NFL player who just scored a touchdown. The truly great hockey players just don't do those things. Even the other black hockey players don't do those things.
But P.K. Subban does. On Saturday night, he did a lot of fist-pumping and calling attention to his black self after scoring the Canadiens' second goal in what turned out to be a 4-2 loss to the Boston Bruins. Throughout the game, he did what he's really good at -- antagonizing the other team and their fans. That's what Subban does and that's why he's reviled in every arena he plays in, except Montréal's Bell Centre where fans are content to have him inside the tent pissing out.
So antagonized was the Bruins' Shawn Thornton that, at the end of the game, he assaulted Subban! Not by hitting him with a fist or a stick in traditional hockey style, but -- gasp!!! -- squirting water on P.K.'s visor. Horrible! Racism!! Blackophobia!!! "That kind of thing has no place in our sport!" Yada yada yada.
But fear not. The National Hockey League is as politically correct as the NBA or any other professional sports group. The NHL assessed the hot-tempered Thornton a fine of $2,820.52, the maximum allowed under the league's collective bargaining agreement with the players' union. That'll teach him, eh!
Will there be any more expressions of politically incorrect sentiment in Game 6? Find out tonight beginning at 1930 EDT.
Note from Ed.: Today's topics are hockey and a certain Canadian hockey player, so we're turning the blog over to our old and cher ami, Poor Len Canayen.
Trending on Twitter today are the words "P.K. Subban" and "nigger". [Notice he didn't say "N-bomb". We're not afraid to call a spade a spade. Ed.] Seems that following the Montréal Canadiens double overtime victory over the big bad Boston Bruins last night, some Beantowners ranted and roared about the said P.K., a person of colour who scored the game-winning goal for les Glorieux... not to mention the first goal as well.
Remarks were made that were, frankly, racist and offensive. It was suggested, inter alia, that a "nigger" should not be playing a white man's game. Walt and I have been highly critical of Mr. Subban in times past, but wish to make it clear that our expressed wish to have him traded to some other team are not based on his race. Please reread:
"Memo to Marc Bergevin: It's time to trade Subban!"
"P.K. can't be trusted on the P.K.!" and
"M Bergevin, les amateurs du CH vous prient![Don't worry. It's in English! Ed.]
Our quarrel with P.K. Subban is, first of all, that he's not the great defenceman he's cracked up to be.
But (I hear you say) he won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's best defenceman, and he was chosen to play on Team Canada in the 2014 Olympics. I have two words for you: political correctness! Yes, he was on Team Canada, and used by coach Mike Babcock for all of 12 minutes in Canada's easiest game (against Austria). Why? Because Babcock -- a pretty savvy hockey guy -- knows that when it comes to defence, P.K. is a liability. Which is what I said.
Look at the picture above. See P.K. skate. See his knuckles drag on the ice when he makes a turn. See him fall down. Why does he keep doing that? I'll tell you why. Because he's top-heavy, that's why! Not unlike a certain African animal whose genus begins with "G". A disproportionate amount of his size and strength is in his upper body.
So what does P.K. do? He tries to make a virtue of it by doing the Savardian spin-o-rama on offence and, on defence, diving to block a shot, sliding across in front of Carey Price or Peter Budaj, playing the hero. Trouble is, the other teams are onto that trick. All a smart opponent has to do is wait until Subban dives, then lift the puck over him. As Don Cherry often says, a defenceman can't do much when he's flat on the ice.
Speaking of which, Donless got called out in at least one Canadian newspaper today for daring to call attention (again) to Subban's several missed attempts to throw a mean hip check. Mr. Cherry says a hip check is great if you connect with the onrushing forward -- the way Alexei Emelin does -- but you're screwed if you miss -- as P.K. Subban often does.
All of which makes him risky on defence, as anyone paying attention could have seen last night. Yes, he scored two goals, and good for him. But he was the goat on Boston's third goal, the one which sent the game into overtime. He got running around in the Canadiens' zone, then stopped and stood like a pylon in front of Carey Price while trying to figure out what to do next.
Our other problem with P.K. Subban is his constant acting like the Big Star he obviously wants to be. Team management put a stop to the high-five-low-five routine he did at the end of games two seasons ago, but he still stands at the gate (after a win) and high-fives the other players as they come off the ice, as if he was the coach and the captain. Nobody else does that, not even the coach or the captain.
It's the show-boating and hot-dogging that makes people call P.K. Subban a "nigger". He acts like a person of colour playing in the NFL or NBA. But this is the NHL -- National HOCKEY League. Hockey players are expected to be modest and sportsmanlike. Yes, even the greatest ones, like Wayne Gretzky and Jean Béliveau. A more courtly and gentlemanly player than Béliveau cannot be imagined. A class act all the way, on and off the ice.
But that kind of modesty doesn't suit P.K. Oh no. Instead, we see the tugging at the "CH" logo on his chest, the alpha male breast-beating, the aforementioned high fives and suchlike showing off. That's nigger behaviour! And before you accuse me of a racist remark, let me point out that not all black people carry on like that. Can you imagine the Prez doing that kind of thing after sinking a 3-pointer on the White House basketball court?
OK, maybe that's stretching it a bit. But closer to home, there's the example of Wayne Simmonds, who's almost as black as Subban. He plays for the Philadelphia Flyers and plays pretty well too -- got a hat trick in their win over the Rangers last week. Yes, he'll pump his fist in the air and do the usual fly-by -- like all the other guys -- but none of this "look how great I am" stuff.
And guess what? You don't hear people booing Wayne Simmonds in every arena he goes to, every time he steps onto the ice. And I would guess that he is called a "nigger" rarely, if ever. Why? Because he doesn't act like one!
Walt will man up and admit when he's wrong. Or even half-wrong, as was the case with my predictions for the Stanley Cup semi-finals.
I was right about the Western Conference clash between Chicago and Los Angeles. Last night, in the second double-overtime game in a row, the Blackhawks prevailed to win the game 4-3 and the series 4 games to 1.
Noteworthy: The Los Angeles team's first goal was scored by #74, known to those fans not afraid of being punished for blasphemy as "King of Kings".
Trivia: The Blackhawks have (IMHO) the second-coolest sweaters (not jerseys!) in the league. Not counting black and white as colours, how many colours can be seen on said sweaters? Answer later.
Meanwhile in Beantown... the Pittsburgh penguins folded up like a cheap suit and were swept by the big bad Bruins of Boston in four straight games. Walt is ahhh-mazed. How a team with Crosby, Iginla, Malin, Neal and Letang could have trouble scoring is beyond me.
Score on Walt's prediction for the semi-finals: .500. Lifetime pct. .978.
What about the Stanley Cup final? It's axiomatic that it winning playoffs all comes down to goaltending. Chicago's Corey Crawford is usually very good, "usually" being the key word here. Boston's Tuuka Rask is almost always excellent. Although I'd love to be wrong, I'm betting on the Bruins.
Answer to trivia question: Looks like SIX (6) colours to me: red, tan (or whatever colour the Indian is), yellow, green, dark red and orange -- the most colours on any NHL sweater.
Note from Ed.: Walt has been a little off his schedule for the last couple of weeks -- spring fever perhaps -- so didn't hand in this piece until after the first Western Conference games last night. Shame to anyone who thinks he waited to see which way the ice was tilting before making his fearless predictions.
The National Hockey League's shortened season ended on Sunday, with the big bad Bruins succumbing to the surprising Senators, so it wasn't until Monday that Walt was able to suss out the final standings and figure out which way to bet on the Stanley Cup playoffs. A few minutes ago Walt posted his best bets for the outcomes of the Western Conference series. Here's what's going to happen in the East.
Eastern Conference
Pittsburgh Penguins (1) vs New York Islanders (8) -- Can Isles' John Tavares win 4 games singlehandedly? Can Evgeni Nabokov stop the other Evgeni (Malkin) and Jerome Iginla and Sid the Kid from scoring? No to both questions. Penguins in 4 if Crosby plays the first game, otherwise in 5.
Montréal Canadiens (2) vs Ottawa Senators (7) -- Are the Habs for real? When does the crystal coach turn into a pumpkin? Naysayers saw the wheels coming off in April, but les Glorieux still finished first in their division. But Ottawa is healthy at last and should put up a good fight. Home ice advantage should see the Canadiens win the series in 7.
Washington Capitals (3) vs New York Rangers (6) -- Will Ovechkin stay hot or suffer a fit of pique if he can't put the puck by Henrik Lundqvist. Can Walt's favourite coach, John Tortorella, get the Rangers to do his will? Walt is amazed to see these teams in the playoffs at all. You pick `em, but I'll go with Rangers in 7, just because I hate Ovechkin.
Boston Bruins (4) vs Toronto Maple Leafs (5) -- Speaking of hate... Here we've got the two roughest, toughest teams in the East squaring off for what should be a fight-filled goonfest. Leafs lack playoff experience and have a couple of nice kids -- exactly -- in goal. Bruins will be wishing they still had Timmy Thomas. Leafs will win Game 4, that's all. Boston in 5.
As noted here on Tuesday, Boston Bruins' all-star goalie, Tim Thomas, refused to attend a White House reception given by the Prez, honouring the club for capturing its first Stanley Cup title in 39 years. (During the same interval, the Montréal Canadiens won the coveted trophy around a dozen times.) Thomas explained his choice to skip Monday's ceremony in a statement posted on his Facebook page.
I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.
Seem's like Tim's exercise of his right, as an American, to have his own opinion doesn't sit well with the governor of Massachusetts. Governor Deval "Patrick" Patrick said today that Thomas's decision to skip the ceremony points to a growing lack of courtesy in the USA. According to AP, the guv said Thomas is "a phenomenal hockey player and he's entitled to his views. It just feels like we are losing in this country basic courtesy and grace."
As readers who are hockey fans will know, Walt is an athletic supporter -- a fan of the greatest hockey team ever, the Montréal Canadiens. As such, I consider the Boston Bruins Enemy No. 1. Of the big, bad Bruins, Tim Thomas, pictured, is Number 1. OK, he's really No. 30, but you catch my drift, I'm sure.
Timmy has a deserved reputation for being more than a little unorthodox, on the ice. His awkward, goofy style goes against everything the goaltending coaches teach you, nowadays, but he's remarkably effective, especially against les Glorieux.
Now Timmy has demonstrated that he can be just as unorthodox -- politically incorrect -- off the ice as on. The team he backstopped to the Stanley Cup last spring were received yesterday at the White House, but the man in the mask wasn't there. He refused to go!
On his Facebook page, Thomas explained his absence thus. I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.
The lamestream media, led by the Boston Globe's Kevin Dupont and the Herald's Margery Eagan, jumped on Tim like ducks on a june bug. They accuse him of being self-centred, immature, a Republican or -- even worse -- possibly a libertarian.
Seems to me the real "sin" of which Tim Thomas stands accused is speaking truth to power. Maybe he's a Republican, maybe not. What he's saying, as I read it, is that the US government as a whole is broken, so he has no time for the whole shower.
Right on, Tim! Al O'Bama has been a dreadful disappointment to the people who voted for him. He only has a chance of being re-elected because the opposition is so fragmented, and because the mass media are giving him a free ride because to do otherwise might seem racist.
Meanwhile, the voice of Joe Sixpack isn't being heard. So it's about time that someone spoke up. Good for you, Tim Thomas!
As for Dupont, Eagan and the rest of the east coast liberal press, it looks to Walt as if freedom of opinion and speech are secondary to political orthodoxy and the importance of election-year photo ops at the White House.
Let's hope that those Boston "journalists" don't ever get to run a sports team or a government. Imagine a parent telling a child "Just go along and be nice." Or "Pretend everything's fine." Or "Go along for the greater good and you'll be able to keep people's esteem."
St. Thomas More said (according to Robert Bolt), "When we stand before God, and you are sent to Paradise for doing according to your conscience, and I am damned for not doing according to mine, will you come with me, for fellowship?"
As I said, I'm not a Bruins fan. And I'm no friend of Tim Thomas when he's playing against "my team". But I like people who stand up for what they believe in, and I don't like those who don't.
Footnote from Ed.: A reader sent us a rude remark about this post, asking what in hell a Canadian would know about US government or politics. I've fixed the headline to make it clear that Tim Thomas is an American...the only one playing regularly for the Bruins.
I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be singing the praises of a book about hockey penned ["keyboarded", surely. Ed.] by an American. But today's the day.
C. Michael Hiam was born in Boston in 1962, and came of age as a hockey fan at the height of the Bobby Orr era. As an undergraduate, he both played hockey and attended as many Bruins games as he could. Today, Hiam is a licensed psychologist, living in Newton MA. When he's not picking wigs, he coaches in the Newton Youth Hockey Association.
His book, Eddie Shore and That Old Time Hockey, is a masterpiece of sports literature, or at least hockey literature. On the subject of what led him to write it, Hiam has to says:
I initially set out to write a book about the Big Bad Bruins of the Bobby Orr years, late 1960s and early 1970s. A few weeks into my research, however, I realized, for various reasons, that I this was not a book that I really wanted to write and so began to cast around for another subject.
Eddie Shore came to mind, and I was surprised to learn that relatively little biographical work had been done on him despite the fact that he was such a giant — and a colorful and controversial one at that — of NHL history. So, I buckled down and began to write about his life and hockey times.
For me, [the book] represents the days when the sport was considerably more violent than it is today, when it was (with the rare exception) purely Canadian, when most players were expected to give generously of their blood, and where colorful personalities, both on and off the ice, defined the game.
What I (Walt) find amazing and praiseworthy is that this American superfan never once minimizes the Canadianness of the game, as it was back in the day. Nor does he attempt to inflate the contribution made by his compatriots. Americans who played and developed the professional game receive due recognition, but no more.
Not only that. Hiam takes great care to get his Canadian spelling and geography correct, right down to the accents on the French names. Considering that virtually everyone who played with or against Eddie Shore -- including many virtual unknowns -- gets a mention in the book, Hiam has done a helluva job on his research. In fact, the five pages of source notes make a fine starting point for anyone who wants to read all there is to read about hockey and the NHL.
One thing bothers me though. Hiam tells Shore stories by the score [Still punning, eh? Ed.] but never repeats, even to deny it, the anecdote told by Don Cherry (the Mouth of the North) about Shore's method of training a goalie to stand up. Exasperated by a goalie who went down too early, Shore, during practice, threw a rope over one of the arena rafters, and tied the other end in a noose around the hapless goalie's neck, forcing him to stay upright or be hanged. So the story goes. Wonder if it's true...
Eddie Short and That Old Time Hockey is published in the USA by Random House and in Canada by McLelland & Stewart. Walt recommends the book most highly to anyone who knows who Art Ross was.
Regular readers know Walt likes hockey as much as the next guy. [Are you saying you like guys? Ed.] OK, let's just say Walt is a big fan of hockey, ever since the days of the Original Six.
Readers who know Canada's younger national sport also know that it's a violent sport. I'm not just talking about the fighting which is part of the game, but about the fact that you have 10 six-footers weighing around 200 pounds hurtling around an 85' by 200' rink. Collisions are bound to occur. They're supposed to occur.
The defensive side of the game comes down to stopping an opposing player who is advancing towards your goal with the puck. If you don't, he might score. So what you do is hit him. That's what you're supposed to do.
However, there are right ways and wrong ways to stop the opposing player in his tracks. This is the wrong way.
The commentary comes from NESN. You'll hear the announcer with the Back Bay accent say that Chara -- all 6'7" of him -- was just doing his job, and didn't deserve even a 5-minute penalty. Walt calls BULLSHIT!
Zdeno Chara is an experienced player. He's also huge. He towers over all the others on the Big Bad Bruins, and the rest of the NHL. He should be aware of his own size and strength. He should also have been aware of his position on the ice, and that of Max Pacioretty, the object of his really dirty hit from behind.
Montréal's La Presse has called for a criminal investigation, which would focus on Chara's intention. If it were found that he intended to rub Pacioretty out on the boards -- which is certainly how it appears -- criminal charges might follow. It's not normal for the law to get involved in what happens on the ice, but there are precedents.
The NESN apologists for Chara are saying he didn't mean to do it. If that's so, all Chara had to do was turn away. Pacioretty wasn't about to bang his head into the stanchion just to see what it felt like. Walt thinks Chara did the crime and deserves punishment -- if not in the Québec criminal courts, at least by the NHL. A hefty fine and suspension for the balance of the season and the playoffs should be about right.
Over to you, Don Cherry.
Update (and sigh of relief): Maxpac is reported to be awake, alert and able to move his arms and legs. He could have been killed...
