NHL 2021 - The "Regular" Season

[sabremike]

With today's loss (which saw UPL leave after getting an injury, the 5th Sabres goalie to go down with an injury this season which must be some sort of NHL record) the Sabres have locked up the wooden spoon and will receive the 3rd overall pick after losing the lottery. No doubt now that they've been eliminated the Broadway Huns can make plans for their inevitable lottery win.

[ChesterCopperpot]

Stop me if you've heard this before - Tom Wilson is a jack wagon 

 

[Death From Above]

Bizarre.

[RIPPA]

Like clockwork - Caps fans on Twitter “if you look at this angle, he did nothing wrong!”

[Tabe]

I mean this in all seriousness - exactly how often does a guy have to commit dirty acts and get suspended for the league to get REALLY serious and suspend him for a year or life?  I mean, in this case, we're talking about a guy who jammed a guy forehead-first into the ice a la Steve Moore and then sucker-punched him while he's on the ice.  That's a multi-game suspension for a first-timer, IMHO, let alone Wilson.  I mean, we're talking about a guy who's just had a 7-game suspension that isn't even close to the longest of his career.  This isn't one of those "well, you could sorta say I hit him in the shoulder" head shot deals either.  Just a blatant cheap shot sucker punch.  I'd be cool with a lifetime ban but 40+ games at minimum should be the standard given his history.

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nhl/news/tom-wilson-suspension-timeline-history-fines-capitals-penguins-zach-aston-reese/k3plwl8lfkot11flpw7ah3yf7

[RIPPA]

Never change NHL

 

[Tabe]

41 minutes ago, RIPPA said:

Never change NHL

 

This is the same NHL that gave Gino Odjick an 8-game suspension for a sucker punch - and Odjick had nowhere near the long history of suspensions that Wilson has.

No, they did what they always do - they penalize the outcome rather than the intent.  Because Buchnevich wasn't injured when Wilson spiked his head into the ice and then sucker-punched him, Wilson walks away.  Wilson *TRIED* to injure the guy, he just didn't succeed.  

Edit: Man, I hadn't even seen the hair pulling bodyslam Wilson put on Artemi Panarin after the sucker punch.  W.T.F.

Edited May 4, 2021 by Tabe

[Death From Above]

I doubt anything really changes so long as we're in the Bettman/Colin Campbell era. Honestly the more we've learned about Campbell over the years the less there is to like.

[Tabe]

In a very, very unusual move, the Rangers not only criticized the decision not to suspend Tom Wilson for putting Artemi Panerin out for the season but have called for the ouster of the head of Player Safety, George Parros.  Parros has held the spot since late 2017 and has suspended Tom Wilson five times in that span.  

https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/31390372/new-york-rangers-extremely-disappointed-league-discipline-tom-wilson-call-removal-george-parros-head-nhl-department-player-safety

 

[DangerMark]

If you want to go "oh, it's just two guys wrestling" about a judo throw on to ice (a position that I am not entirely convinced by, it must be said,) well I guess you can argue than Panarin is retaliating and that sort of thing shouldn't be necessary in a professional sport played by adults.

The punch was an absolute dog shot and if that's the "maximum allowable under the CBA," then throw it, and the people who negotiated it, into the sea and get a disciplinary system which eliminates that sort of rubbish.

[Infinit]

A mounted punch to the head of someone prone on the ice should be an automatic suspension. End of story.

[Death From Above]

Maybe this explains a little about why the Rangers were willing to sound off, if some people had an inkling they were out the door anyway.

Seems like ownership and management were not on the same page about the direction of the team going forward. New York sports operating as usual.

[RIPPA]

Good time to remind folks that the Rangers are owned by James Dolan

[Raziel]

1 hour ago, RIPPA said:

Good time to remind folks that the Rangers are owned by James Dolan

https://media.giphy.com/media/kGhv7eaSOx5FC/giphy.gif

 

 

[Tabe]

4 hours ago, Infinit said:

A mounted punch to the head of someone prone on the ice should be an automatic suspension. End of story.

Got into a discussion with a Caps fan about this subject.  When I said Wilson was cheap, he responded with, "What about Crosby and Marchand?" (slight paraphrase).  So I said "You just admitted Wilson is a cheap player, you just think other guys are, too."  That left him baffled.

[RIPPA]

Yeah basically the Caps fans responses I see are either "What about"isms (always centered on Crosby) or that Tom Wilson is the greatest because he got away with it

[RIPPA]

Chris Drury has been promoted to BOTH roles

And Mark Messier is basically lobbying to be head coach

[RIPPA]

So the Caps/Rangers game is going well - halfway through the 1st period and there have been 6 fights so far

[SirFozzie]

now if the rangers could stop getting their ass kicked in the fights, that would be great.

[odessasteps]

 

[SirFozzie]

100 first period PIM

[Infinit]

Respects to the Rangers for stepping up, even if most of the fights didn't end up in their favor.

[Tabe]

Announcers during the game cracked me up. Pierre says Brendan Smith didn't want to fight Chara back when Brendan was in Detroit - but Chara is the one who turned down that fight. And Smith certainly held his own with Tom Wilson, who is a much better fighter than Chara. 

And, of all the irony, Buchnevich, the sucker-punch victim, is likely going to get suspended. 

Edited May 6, 2021 by Tabe

[Pete]

 

[Kuetsar]

15 hours ago, RIPPA said:

Chris Drury has been promoted to BOTH roles

And Mark Messier is basically lobbying to be head coach

I'm sure that will end well.