It's true - the teams in the NHL playoffs are officially out of control.
There have been elbows to the head, crosschecks, charges on defenseless players, and other stuff that I thought was only legal in the WWE.
However, even worse than the action of the players, is the - for the lack of a better word - arbitrary suspensions that NHL Vice President of Player Safety Brendan Shanahan has been handing out.
A roulette board would produce more consistent results.
Shanahan did a great job during the regular season by cracking down on headshots and dirty plays, handing out strict suspensions and hefty fines. Players seemed like they were getting the idea.
Then the playoffs started. Nashville captain Shea Weber punched Detroit forward Henrik Zetterberg in the back of the head as time expired on the first night of the playoffs. Weber then proceeded to take Zetterberg's head and repeatedly smash it into the glass.
Shanahan fined Weber $2,500 and did not suspend him.
When Shanahan preaches that blows to the head and concussions are the most important issues, and then allows Weber to get away with that, he's sending a message that players can do whatever they want in the playoffs.
Weber defended himself by simply saying: "It's the playoffs. It's the playoffs."
However, a few days later, Shanahan flipped the switch and starting handing out suspensions like candy to trick-or-treaters. There have been nine suspensions handed out as of Thursday.
One of those suspensions was on Rangers rookie Carl Hagelin, who received three games for elbowing and injuring Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson.
Hagelin deserved to be suspended. This was the type of hit that players were warned about and punished for during the season. But a three-game suspension is far too long.
Although the hit looked bad, Hagelin was trying to finish the play on a puck carrier releasing the puck, and he has never been in trouble with the league. There was no intent. Weber practically assaulted Zetterberg after the game, and he got off with a fine that he could pay for with the change between his couch cushions. Those are two totally different plays.
Let's take Penguins forward James Neal's suspension, for instance. Neal skated across the rink, left his feet, and hit Flyers forward Sean Couturier when he was away from the puck. Just to be sure that every person in the arena saw his intent, Neal then skated after Flyers center Claude Giroux and threw an elbow right at his head. Giroux has missed time this year because of concussions.
Neal received one game. Only one game for both hits? That's half a game for each hit. Shanahan believed Neal when he said that he tried to avoid the hit and that's why he left his feet. However, in the video of Shanahan's explanation, the film is stopped and Neal is looking directly at Couturier. Neal had plenty of time to avoid the hit.
Shanahan believed Neal's intent was evident because he pursued Giroux after the hit.
By this standard, leaving your feet to avoid the hit is something that Shanahan can tolerate.
So if that's the case, why did Blackhawks forward Andrew Shaw get suspended for three games for his "hit" on Phoenix goaltender Mike Smith? A goalie is fair game when he's outside the crease, and Shaw had no intent of hitting Smith.
Smith played the puck and Shaw did not leave his feet. He even turned his head to avoid getting hit in the face. It should have been a two-minute penalty for interference, but Smith didn't look like Dominik Hasek trying to make his trademark fish-out-of-water saves.
Shanahan has thrown around three words when giving out suspensions: intent, injury, and recklessness. Intent must be the main aspect that the league looks at when giving out suspensions.
Injury is the hardest to judge because you can't always tell how long a player will be out in the first few days.
Reckless stick work and hits - such as Hagelin's - should not carry as much of a suspension. A one- or two-game ban isn't guaranteed to prevent this sort of behavior.
Let's be consistent, Shanahan, because things are spiraling out of control.
Email: bryan.feiler@ubspectrum.com
