A quick way to end cheap hits.

[deluca67]

Maybe it's time to start penalizing teams for their players actions. Give Janssens his three game suspension. But also take a fourth round pick from NJ and give to Toronto. Give Colorado a couple of first round from Vancouver.

 

Start taking assets from teams and the cheap shots would be gone in a instant.

[Rick Vaive Horse Collar]

lol...send the Sens Zamboni to Buffalo for the Neil hit...

[Supersabre]

Maybe it's time to start penalizing teams for their players actions. Give Janssens his three game suspension. But also take a fourth round pick from NJ and give to Toronto. Give Colorado a couple of first round from Vancouver.

 

Start taking assets from teams and the cheap shots would be gone in a instant.

 

 

Be careful what you wish for. :doh: I really don't think that you would want to see that happen to us? Anyway, I am assuming that you meant your statement with a touch of sarcasm/facetiouness attached to it? If the cheapshots are to end the Owners/The NHLPA/ and Campbell/Bettman need to make sure that the rules are enforced as they stand now. Also I forgot to mention that the officiating committee needs to be onboard with this as well.

[deluca67]

Be careful what you wish for. :doh: I really don't think that you would want to see that happen to us? Anyway, I am assuming that you meant your statement with a touch of sarcasm/facetiouness attached to it? If the cheapshots are to end the Owners/The NHLPA/ and Campbell/Bettman need to make sure that the rules are enforced as they stand now. Also I forgot to mention that the officiating committee needs to be onboard with this as well.

 

Not at all. If players like Janssens cost teams draft picks they will never dress for a game again. That's what the

NHL needs. Get rid of the scrub players like Janssens and Neil. Their purpose isn't to play hockey. It's to go out and hurt the real hockey players.

 

I'm tired of seeing the NHL dragged down by the actions of players who have no business in the league in the first place. It isn't bad enough that Neil goes out and hurts Drury with a cheap he goes out a couple of games later and nails another player with a cheap shot on an icing.

 

It's time for everyone involved to stop pointing to each other to solve the problem.

[Supersabre]

Not at all. If players like Janssens cost teams draft picks they will never dress for a game again. That's what the

NHL needs. Get rid of the scrub players like Janssens and Neil. Their purpose isn't to play hockey. It's to go out and hurt the real hockey players.

 

I'm tired of seeing the NHL dragged down by the actions of players who have no business in the league in the first place. It isn't bad enough that Neil goes out and hurts Drury with a cheap he goes out a couple of games later and nails another player with a cheap shot on an icing.

 

It's time for everyone involved to stop pointing to each other to solve the problem.

 

 

I see your point and I definitley understand where your coming from. Something needs to be done. Your suggestion would never pass muster just because the NHLPA/Owners/Bettman and Campbell would have to sign off on this and realistically, I don't think that this will ever happen because the stakes are so high. It seeems that the trend right now is to turn a blind eye to this type of behavior by these "Goons" and the duplicity by the NHL. The Neils and Janssens need to be severly punished with huge and I mean huge fines and a hefty suspension. But until the league and the NHLPA comes to that point, this type of unacceprtable behavior will continue. I am just as frustrated as everyone else is with this situation. Obviously, Bettman is a lame duck President who is just going to sit on his "Hee Haw" and do nothing about it. What does it take to get rid of a Schmuck like that? I don't know. :doh: Its a thought but a thought that would probably never see the light of day in the NHL.

[Bmwolf21]

It's a nice thought, but it matters not. The NHL only punishes when forced to, or when one their marquee players and/or teams are affected.

 

If the league cannot get serious with these suspensions - 3 games for a broken neck? I'm looking at you, Colin Campbell - and isn't concerned enough to push stiffer penalties/fines/suspensions through the NHLPA for their own good (required helmets comes to mind) then you can forget about the league punishing the coach, the GM, the owner, the franchise, the beer vendor, or the the stick boy for some cement head's actions...

[sabregoats]

Another good way to end cheap shots is to make the suspension they recieve as long as the time the player that they hurt missed. If the player isnt injured than there should be some minimum suspension in place preferbly over 3 games.

[Samson's Flow]

Another good way to end cheap shots is to make the suspension they recieve as long as the time the player that they hurt missed. If the player isnt injured than there should be some minimum suspension in place preferbly over 3 games.

 

theres a decent idea, it would take the decision making out of the leagues hands since it would be a default suspension based on the other players health. then again the NHL and/or nhlPA would never agree to any of this so its only hypothetical

[sabreman]

Maybe it's time to start penalizing teams for their players actions. Give Janssens his three game suspension. But also take a fourth round pick from NJ and give to Toronto. Give Colorado a couple of first round from Vancouver.

 

Start taking assets from teams and the cheap shots would be gone in a instant.

if you did what DeLuca67 said then philly would want some from us for the cambell/umburger hit/collison

and we'd want ottwa x2 for connely (im not good at spelling)and for drury

so i agree with him we'd be gettin nice picks!

[shrader]

How to end the shots to the head? Call penalties.

[deluca67]

if you did what DeLuca67 said then philly would want some from us for the cambell/umburger hit/collison

and we'd want ottwa x2 for connely (im not good at spelling)and for drury

so i agree with him we'd be gettin nice picks!

 

The Campbell / Umberger hit was 100% clean. Campbell hit him straight on man to man. It would be different if Campbell charged him from behind and went for his head. The hit on Connolly was 100% clean also.

 

The point isn't to remove hitting from the game. When it's done legally it's a beautiful part of the game. The high speed collisions is a great selling point which has nothing to do with what Neil and Janssens did. Headhunters have no place in the NHL or hockey on any level.

 

I would never expect the NHL to be so bold. After all didn't Bertuzzi only serve 20 games of his suspension? And he almost killed a player.

[sabreman]

what was the guy who got hits name?

i should remember!

[deluca67]

what was the guy who got hits name?

i should remember!

 

Steve Moore.

 

Bertuzzi is a scumbag and the fact he is allowed to wear an NHL jersey, or any hockey jersey, is an insult to the sport.

[inkman]

How to end the shots to the head? Call penalties.

I think a lot less liberties would be taken if a 5 minute major and game misconduct were right around the corner.

[PASabreFan]

 

The Campbell / Umberger hit was 100% clean. Campbell hit him straight on man to man. It would be different if Campbell charged him from behind and went for his head.

 

Neil didn't go for Drury's head. His elbows were down, and his shoulder caught Drury's jaw, just like Campbell's upper arm or shoulder caught Umberger's. The only difference between the hits is that Neil's hit was a hair later and came from the side. Do you want to make hits from the side illegal?

[wjag]

Are teams allowed to call up replacements for suspensions? If so, then not allowing replacements might also serve as a deterent. Especially if that happens in the playoffs...

[apuszczalowski]

The Campbell / Umberger hit was 100% clean. Campbell hit him straight on man to man. It would be different if Campbell charged him from behind and went for his head. The hit on Connolly was 100% clean also.

 

The point isn't to remove hitting from the game. When it's done legally it's a beautiful part of the game. The high speed collisions is a great selling point which has nothing to do with what Neil and Janssens did. Headhunters have no place in the NHL or hockey on any level.

 

I would never expect the NHL to be so bold. After all didn't Bertuzzi only serve 20 games of his suspension? And he almost killed a player.

If what you are originally suggesting were to go through (picks sent to teams for illegal hits) then you would end up removing all hitting from games because payers would be too afraid to hit someone else for the fear of getting it considered illegal and costing the team a pick

 

Baby steps first. lets get the league to call penalty's on those hits first, then if they still happen, lets get tougher suspensions

[nfreeman]

Neil didn't go for Drury's head. His elbows were down, and his shoulder caught Drury's jaw, just like Campbell's upper arm or shoulder caught Umberger's. The only difference between the hits is that Neil's hit was a hair later and came from the side. Do you want to make hits from the side illegal?

 

I completely disagree. Specifically:

 

1. I think Neil intentionally targeted Drury's head.

 

2. There is a HUGE difference between the Neil/Drury hit and the Campbell/Umberger hit: UMBERGER HAD THE PUCK!!

 

When you have the puck, you are fair game to be hit. The NHL rule is that you can be hit while you have the puck. You can also be hit after you unload the puck until (i) someone else touches it or (ii) a significant amount of time has gone by (not sure what the exact verbiage is, but that is the concept). The NHL ruled in the Drury case that although Drury had unloaded the puck, nobody else had touched it yet and not enough time had gone by to make it a late hit. I think plenty of time had gone by and it was a late hit. By contrast, the NHL ruled that the Janssen/Kaberle hit was illegal b/c more time had gone by -- making it a late hit.

 

This is all classic NHL BS hairsplitting, IMHO. (Although I'm not a Buffalo sports conspiracy theorist, I will point out that a hit on a leaf resulted in a suspension, but a very similar hit (not quite as late, but still very similar) on a Sabre did not warrant a suspension.) A hit that takes place well after a player has unloaded the puck, especially a hit to the head, should be an automatic suspension, and not for 3 games either. Neil should've been suspended for 8 games; Janssen for 12.

 

As for DeLuca's idea: I think it's a good idea, but a bit besides the point. The NHL first needs to decide that it wants to eliminate the thuggery. Once it does so, the enforcement mechanism question will work itself out. But the NHL doesn't want to crack down. There are still too many old-school don cherry types who are willing to excuse these hits with nonsense like "you need to keep your head up" and "that was a hockey hit". As long as they are running the asylum, incidents like these will continue to occur.

[Bmwolf21]

I think a lot less liberties would be taken if a 5 minute major and game misconduct were right around the corner.

That would be the easiest and probably most effective start to ending head shots and late hits, which is why we'll never see it happen.

I completely disagree. Specifically:

 

1. I think Neil intentionally targeted Drury's head.

 

2. There is a HUGE difference between the Neil/Drury hit and the Campbell/Umberger hit: UMBERGER HAD THE PUCK!!

Good points, and again it needs to be mentioned that Campbell hit him head-on, not from the side or the back.

 

There are still too many old-school don cherry types who are willing to excuse these hits with nonsense like "you need to keep your head up" and "that was a hockey hit". As long as they are running the asylum, incidents like these will continue to occur.

And that's the main point. There are too many dinosaurs in the NHL main office and wearing the stripes who want to maintain old-school "tradition" at the cost of the safety of the players and the integrity and growth of the game.

 

BTW, does anyone know what rule actually covers checking and body contact? I haven't been able to find the specific rule in NHL.com's watered-down rulebook, and I don't have the time right now to wade through the PDF full version.

[Spandrel]

Another good way to end cheap shots is to make the suspension they recieve as long as the time the player that they hurt missed. If the player isnt injured than there should be some minimum suspension in place preferbly over 3 games.

 

I like this idea, but when they asked Razor about it on the Shootout show, he didn't like it saying that the players could "police themselves". I don't know, but to me, if your cheap shot injures a guy for 20 games, then you sit for a 20 games without a paycheck. How could that not make guys think twice about taking those kinds of shots?

 

I think the Neil hit is really enough in that "gray area" that it is hard to assess. I hear both sides' arguments and I think both are right. That was literally an even 50/50 cheap/good hit depending on what team you playing on. I'm trying to be impartial despite the fact that we lost Drury for 3 games and I loathe Chris Neil to begin with.

[shrader]

Neil didn't go for Drury's head. His elbows were down, and his shoulder caught Drury's jaw, just like Campbell's upper arm or shoulder caught Umberger's. The only difference between the hits is that Neil's hit was a hair later and came from the side. Do you want to make hits from the side illegal?

 

Watch the video again. Neil's shoulder hit the bottom of Drury's helmet, knocking it off. He was definitely going for his head. These guys know they can get away with it, so they head hunt with their shoulders.

[PASabreFan]

 

Watch the video again. Neil's shoulder hit the bottom of Drury's helmet, knocking it off. He was definitely going for his head. These guys know they can get away with it, so they head hunt with their shoulders.

 

There's no good view, that I know of, that shows that. Drury's head snaps sharply to the right, so I have to assume his jaw was hit.

 

 

 

There is a HUGE difference between the Neil/Drury hit and the Campbell/Umberger hit: UMBERGER HAD THE PUCK!!

....

I think plenty of time had gone by and it was a late hit. By contrast, the NHL ruled that the Janssen/Kaberle hit was illegal b/c more time had gone by -- making it a late hit.

 

Umberger was not in possession of the puck when he was hit.

 

"Plenty of time" had not gone by before Neil hit Drury. It was timed at .44 seconds or something, although I figured it was a full second.

 

We can have a great debate here, but I think we need to establish some baseline facts.

[shrader]

There's no good view, that I know of, that shows that. Drury's head snaps sharply to the right, so I have to assume his jaw was hit.

Umberger was not in possession of the puck when he was hit.

 

Maybe it's the size of the pads that leads to the different views here, but there was a video on the ESPN webpage the day after that clearly showed contact to the bottom of the helmet.

[Taro T]

There's no good view, that I know of, that shows that. Drury's head snaps sharply to the right, so I have to assume his jaw was hit.

Umberger was not in possession of the puck when he was hit.

 

"Plenty of time" had not gone by before Neil hit Drury. It was timed at .44 seconds or something, although I figured it was a full second.

 

We can have a great debate here, but I think we need to establish some baseline facts.

By rule, Umberger WAS in possession of the puck. (Unfortunately, so technically was Drury even though the puck was moving back up ice by the time he got clocked.) At the time of the impact, the puck was probably ~6" away from Umberger's stick and he almost certainly would have regained control of the puck if he hadn't have run into Campbell. He appeared to be lunging forward to try to recorrall it after he misplayed the pass which is why when Campbell lowered his shoulder it hit head and his arm hit chest rather than just being shoulder to chest.

 

Also, until about the 10th time I watched the Umberger hit, I thought it was the hit that separated Umberger from the puck, not poor puckhandling. I still think that Umberger does regain possession of the puck without a player right in front of him, so I guess I'd still say it was the hit that separated Umberger from the puck. My guess is, most other people thought the same thing watching the hit originally. There was no question that the puck was on the opposite side of the ice when Chris got rocked.

 

When guys can skate around the entire rink in 12 seconds, 1 second is a very long time between shooting the puck and getting drilled.

[X. Benedict]

lol...send the Sens Zamboni to Buffalo for the Neil hit...

Sabertooth to Philly....