Quote:
Originally Posted by bradshaw06
So much for taking responsibility for your actions. But hey, Thornton was really really sorry.Yes, fight over a clean hit. Lets have our one of our remaining top 2 dmen fight a fourth liner in a tied game. makes tons of sense rick. And lets not act like the big bad bruins are squeaky clean.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rebecca De Mornay
I think that's what is being overlooked here the most.
Orpik's hit on Eriksson was a perfectly clean hit, it's a shame he got hurt but Orpik didn't do anything wrong.
Thornton should have been going after Neal, if anyone.
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Exactly what I've been saying all along. PLAYERS SHOULD NOT BE PUNISHED FOR DOING SOMETHING CORRECTLY. It's like getting a dock in pay every time you do something right at your job. And this is coming from a proponent for fighting staying in the game. It's one of the biggest things wrong with the NHL right now, and it's sad because it's seeping down into other levels of hockey.
Like I said before, I'm ok with Thornton getting 15 games. I'm down with severe, malicious actions finally being accompanied by a hefty amount of time missed and money lost, even if it is someone who I respect as a player like Shawn Thornton. However, I don't like that Neal's actions warranted a smaller amount of games missed. We are missing the point if we measure "how much more" pre-meditated something was. The fact is, Neal was trying to hurt Marchand. It was malicious. I know the two incidents were not exactly related, but because of their proximity they are very easy to compare and should be compared, IMO.
Again, not trying to hang Neal and put Thornton on a pedestal, but you've got to look at what's going on in the NHL right now and come down hard on this stuff. It seems like every night guys are getting called in for hearings.
EDIT: And yes, I also agree with Brad in the strategy behind Orpik not fighting for the reason of their positions on the depth chart. Cheap hit? Yeah, fight it out buddy. Clean hit? No need to get punched in the face by one of the best pugilists in the game and risk injury. Add to the fact that you've got a good shot at making the Olympic team in the next month and don't want to compromise that.