Raffi Torres of the Coyotes wasn’t even penalized for his vicious check on Marian Hossa of the Blackhawks in last night’s NHL playoff game, but he was suspended indefinitely today by the NHL office. It sort of seems like a no-brainer, since Hossa was carried off the ice on a stretcher after the hit, but the NHL has far more shaky ground to stand on than the NFL when it comes to cracking down on violence.
Watch the video and it’s immediately apparent that the hit is an unnecessary one. Hossa has passed the puck and is out of the play at mid-ice. Torres hits him just to hit him. But that’s OK in the NHL.
Torres leads with his shoulder. Which is actually how you are supposed to do it. He does two things wrong. First, he hits Hossa in the head with his shoulder. The announcer, who immediately says that Torres WILL be suspended for the hit, even says that is OK — if, that is, Torres had at least one skate on the ice. But Torres jumped at Hossa and left his feet — although he is barely off the ground when he makes contact. Phoenix announcer Tyson Nash called it “as clean a hit as you’re going to get” and got death threats for doing so.
There was absolutely no raason for this hit except to hurt someone. So, yes, I believe he should be suspended. But then I’m not an NHL fan. I was a hockey fan in college at the University of North Dakota (when UND won two NCAA titles in my four years and were runner-up my freshman year). And I enjoy Olympic hockey. But I don’t like the pro game because fights are considered “part of the game.”
And that’s the problem I have with the Torres suspension. Everyone says it was a legitimate hockey play that was done in a dirty manner. Sort of like sacking a quarterback, but then driving him to the ground.
My problem is this: How can you suspend players for a hit that would have been legal if one of his skates was one inch lower, still touching the ice instead of being just above the surface, but players don’t get suspended for dropping their gloves and punching each other in the face? Even if you knock someone cold.
