Tom Wilson crossed the line again - no time stamp needed because this is a relevant statement a few times per year - but it is unclear where the line is because the NHL keeps moving it.
Chaos ensued, both on the ice in reaction to the violent act and off the ice in reaction to the league’s decision to only fine the repeat offender $5,000. Interesting, right? The league acknowledged Wilson did something wrong, again, but decided not to take action to prevent wrongdoing in the future. Anyway.
The action in reference occurred during a post-whistle wrestling match, where Wilson attempted a back of the head punch to a pinned-down Pavel Buchnevich, followed by a takedown of helmetless Artemi Panarin (who only entered the scrum for mediating purposes), pulling his hair in the process. Both actions would have been deemed illegal in the UFC if you were wondering.
We have seen more violent incidences in the NHL before, even from Wilson himself, but it was the intent and the repetitive nature of the acts from such a player that sparked uproar in the hockey world.
To the surprise of many, even the Rangers went public with their criticism. In a statement condemning the decision, and with the intention of protecting their stars, they stated that player safety head Gearoge Parros “is unfit to continue in his current role.”
The Rangers are right, and finally the ground beneath the NHL’s “hockey men” club has been shaken - it’s important that the chaos does not stop here, if the NHL is going to reverse course, to a safer, more exciting game.
And actually, the chaos didn’t stop. Two days after the statement, notorious owner James Dolan dismissed the Rangers’ General Manager and President. The reasons being are not totally clear, but we do know this was coming regardless of the statement, and it is rumoured that the two executives did not stand by the statement.
The league did not stand for the statement, either, for obvious reasons - but their aggressive response and defence of Parros is questionable. The inconsistencies in judgement are blinding, and if the league continues to defend them they are walking into a variety of problems.
The NHL’s ignorance is not without reason, however. They get attention and ratings from violence. Whenever non-hockey fans discover two players can interrupt the means of the game to fight with no resistance from officials, they stop and look.
The rematch game between the Rangers and Caps was likely one of the most viewed games of the season. All hockey fans, including myself, tuned in to see how the tension would play out. Sometimes, it’s the absurdity of the sport that attracts viewers, but I would argue this can only do so much for growing the game - because it comes at the cost of skill, and most importantly player safety.
The NHL should be more concerned about future lawsuits, and the fact that Connor McDavid’s 100 points in 53 games was only a big deal in Canada.
Inconsistency
There are two different displays of violence and physicality in the NHL today. There is the type that plays a role in strategy and occurs in-play - such as hitting. Then there is the stuff that occurs between whistles, irrelevant to the objectives of the game - such as fighting and other ‘dust ups.’
Where I think the NHL is getting it wrong is taking the violence that happens in-play more seriously than the violence that occurs separately from the objectives.
As right as it may be to suspend a player for a hit to the head or a knee-on-knee, I find it odd that a player can be suspended for multiple games if they target the head in-game, but if they do it after the whistle, or punch an opposing player in the head several times, the penalty is lighter. The department of player safety, like its officials, seems to be managing the games but not actually prioritizing play safety.
Several examples can be used to highlight the inconsistencies, even in the last few weeks. Alex Edler was suspended two games for a knee-on-knee hit, dangerous and worthy of a suspension, but no less violent and intentional than a punch to the head or body slam to a helmetless player. Following Wilson’s latest incident, Pavel Buchnevich cross-checked Anthony Mantha above the shoulders mid-game after the two went at each other - he was suspended one game, even as a first-time offender. What made this suspendable that Wilson’s acts didn’t?
Another example of punishment inconsistency that has buried the line in the sand is the Nazem Kadri incident from the 2019 playoffs. Also a crosscheck above the shoulders but in this case, the punishment was suspension for the remainder of the series, however long it lasted. A much greater penalty than the equally violent acts of Buchnevich and Wilson, and Kadri’s offence occurred in retaliation to several questionable incidents that threatened the health of him and his teammates that went uncalled by the officials.
The video below highlights several penalties and dangerous acts, among some entertainment, but only one player and team is penalized. It’s situations like this that enable players to cross the line because they do not know where it is.
Why Should the NHL correct this?
There is no debating the dramatics of the Rangers and Caps rematch, which saw several fights and penalties, was entertaining. It’s worth noting, however, that there was little focus on the hockey game itself. These games might draw a crowd but the truth is more games like this impede the work of the games skilled players, and continuing to enable chaos games by letting a suspension slide is not worth the cost of player safety.
T.J. Oshie’s hat trick shortly after his father’s passing deserved more attention.
Yes, fans enjoy violence, but even the NFL has gone to great lengths to protect their quarterbacks. Fans who insist they cannot watch hockey without the violence probably prefer to watch the UFC anyway.
The NHL needs superstars on the ice rather than on the IR - more so, they need superstars on the powerplay. The league needs more goals, not more fights. The league needs new fans to rally behind teams - and violence does not accomplish that.
Hockey is a contact sport and it will remain that way, but the violence that ensues irrelevant to the outcome of the game, because officials and the league cannot manage it, is not only pointless but it limits the potential of this league. There would be no need for messages to be sent or injustices to be settled outside of the rules of the game if the league did it themselves.
Calling the rules consistently will improve the quality of the game, and simply enable everyone to be better.
Top photo retrieved from cbssports.com