Alain Vigneault remembers a late hit that happened in Boston one time.
The Rangers’ head coach referenced it today after one of his top centers, Derek Stepan, was injured on a check that the NHL may need to review with a stopwatch.
“I remember Aaron Rome in this building, .6 seconds late, getting suspended four games in the Stanley Cup Final,” Vigneault said, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News.
For those that need their memories refreshed (nobody in Vancouver does, that’s for sure), here’s Rome’s late hit that knocked Nathan Horton out of the 2011 final with a concussion:
Now here’s the hit that Matt Beleskey put on Stepan:
According to Vigneault, Stepan has some broken ribs and is out indefinitely.
Over to you, Department of Player Safety.
Update:
A league source has confirmed that the hit is being reviewed.