Just when we all started to get past the Alex Ovechkin suspension and
the controversy and debate over the hit on Brian Campbell, we have yet
another bad hit to mull over.
This time, it’s James Wisniewski
taking out Brent Seabrook with a high hit that pasted Seabrook to the
boards and left him toppling to the ice in a heap. Fortunately, I’m
fairly certain that we can all agree this hit is incredibly dangerous,
illegal and definitely suspension-worthy. You can see the
hit here.
Wisniewski was given just a two-minute minor for
charging however, when it seems such a hit would warrant so much more
than that. After watching the video of the hit, you can obviously see
his upper arm make direct contact with Seabrook’s head; technically not
an elbow but this is exactly the sort of hit the NHL is fighting to take
out of the game.
I’m sure the NHL is going to take a long, hard
look at this one and it will be very interesting to see just what Colin
Campbell has to say about this hit. Seeing Seabrook crumple to the ice
like that will not help Wisniewski’s case, nor will the fact that it
appeared he left his feet as he made the hit.
Here’s what I don’t
understand. First of all, everyone knows the NHL is targeting these
sorts of hits after the past couple of weeks. You would think the
players would be careful not to target the head, knowing that the league
is going to start coming down harder and harder on these hits the more
they happen. And you can’t say this was an accidental hit to the head;
his arm was raised and made solid contact above the shoulders on a
player that was standing up tall on the ice.
What doesn’t help
matters is that it seems the hit might have been a bit of retaliation. Just
moments before Wisniewski took him out, Seabrook threw what seemed to be a
blatant elbow to the head of Corey Perry. It was a high high to the back of Corey’s head that sent him sprawling along the boards; the hit went uncalled, and
the play then resulted in the Wisniewski hit.
There might also be some question as to whether Seabrook played up the severity of the hit and embellished his injury, as is mentioned in the video. Seabrook did not return to the ice after the hit, however, so I’m fairly certain his reaction was genuine. Also, I don’t know how someone can get blindsided into their boards, where an elbow drives your head in the glass, and then make an instantly conscious decision to play up the severity of his injury.
Have I mentioned I’m
pretty sick and tired of writing about all of this?
