Sports Perspectives

By Beaker

Senior Vice President (what, there’s more than one VP?) and Director of Hockey Operations (now that’s a title) Colin Campbell has decided to not suspend Matt Cooke’s hit to the head on Marc Savard. Savard was taken off the ice on a stretcher.

Count me in as one of those sports fans who felt this to be the wrong decision.

It was a bush league hit and the NHL were wrong to not suspend him. Cooke clearly went in on an unsuspecting Savard and ravaged him with a shoulder to the head hit. Sure, what he did was “legal” but it was dirty nonetheless. Cooke didn’t have to hit him. It wasn’t a hockey play. Pure and simple.

Campbell painted himself into a corner by not suspending Mike Richards on a different incident and I’m guessing the NHL prays it can avoid more of these spineless hits moving forward. And the timing did stink given it took place during the GM meetings in Florida.

Still. Colie. Come on, brotha.

What baffles me is last year they made an immediate rule change for the antics of ice jester Sean Avery towards Martin Brodeur but won’t do the right thing and protect its players? Pending the rule change for hits to the head, public opinion would have been in Campbell’s side. This is a case of doing right by the players and the game.

Enough of this god dang crap.

What to do? That’s a million dollar question. Does making it an automatic penalty (like high sticking) or misconduct make sense? I’m not sure. Hockey is a fast, hard game and players must have their heads up at all times. Injuries as a result of hard, clean hits will occur. Fans can tolerate that. It’s the blindside hits that are causing the problems.

I don’t think removing the instigator rule, as it’s been suggested, will necessarily stop hits to the head. The IR should be removed for other reasons. You could be a cynic, as one friend is, and conclude with all the mediocre talent filling out rosters, this stuff is bound to happen.

The fact the NHL will introduce new rules is a start. Let’s see what that brings and move from there. In the end, good old fashioned common sense and respect has to prevail. Players will simple have to ask themselves, “do I really need to blindside this guy?”

One thing is for sure, the NHL should deal with this in-house. The chorus of calls have begun to get the government involved. Why is it, and please forgive the slight digression, every time there’s a problem some people run to the government for a solution? What ever happened to independence and self-reliability?

In the 1990s Mario Lemieux called the NHL a “garage league.” He was right. Hockey was unwatchable at one point. The NHL then logically and properly took measures to restore some artistry in the game. Ironically, given the speed, high-tech equipment and the post lock-out rules changes, disrespectful physical play threatens to make the NHL a garage league again.