Horton Hears a Boom

Colin Campbell is gone, but the idiocy continues. Rome shouldn’t have been suspended for his hit on Horton last night. If one thinks the Rome hit last night was dirty, then he must also think the Chara hit on Pacioretty earlier this season was dirty. There’s no way around that. Both hits were late (but we’re talking fractions of a second here), but neither was a blindside hit and neither targeted the head. According to those who analyze the replays, from release of the puck to contact, last night’s hit was 28 frames. 30 is a full second. It was delivered towards Horton’s chest leading with the shoulder (exactly the way every hockey player is taught to hit), and it was absolutely not a blindside hit so Rule 48 doesn’t apply. Was it a hard hit? Yes, absolutely. Was it malicious? Debateable. However, it wasn’t deserving of a suspension. Maybe it was worthy of a 2 minute minor for roughing or interference.

The NHL suspends now based on result rather than intent, and they even admitted it. That’s a dangerous precedent to set. They were scared not to issue a suspension for this hit since people were STILL talking about the alleged bite by Burrows. Here’s the quote from the NHL: "Two factors were considered in reaching this decision," NHL senior vice president of hockey operations Mike Murphy said in a statement Tuesday. "The hit by Rome was clearly beyond what is acceptable in terms of how late it was delivered after Horton had released the puck and it caused a significant injury." Now, you can see how inconsistent the NHL is. The key factors are lateness and the significance of the injury you say, Mr. Murphy? That noise you just heard are the protests of Montreal Canadiens fans wondering why Chara’s “late” hit on Pacioretty which caused “significant injury” was not worthy of a suspension as well since it meets both of the stated criteria. It’s hard to argue with them. The NHL’s dartboard system of justice is absurd. There are no standards, and from case to case it’s anybody’s guess what the NHL will decide. This is just the latest example. It seems every few weeks the NHL molds it’s “factors” to meet whatever punishment they wish to hand down. Last night’s hit reminded me a lot of some of the hits that Scott Stevens delivered during his career, concussing many players but not receiving any suspensions or even penalties. It’s amazing how much has changed.