They Never Get Easier

Boston Bruins defenceman Zdeno Chara (33) hits Montreal Canadiens left wing Max Pacioretty (67) into the boards during the second period of NHL hockey play in Montreal, March 8, 2011. (REUTERS/Shaun Best)

Colin Campbell may be just as happy he has to sit this one out.

And no matter what Mike Murphy decides, at least it will demonstrate that whoever makes disciplinary decisions in the NHL, it's always going to leave some unhappy and others shaking their heads at what they perceive to be the NHL's wonky justice system.

Campbell, of course, can't be the one to rule on Tuesday night's incident in Montreal involving Boston defenceman Zdeno Chara because his son, Gregory, plays for the Bruins, and so Campbell will, as always, recuse himself from the matter.

It will thus fall to Murphy, Campbell's top assistant, and he'll hold a hearing with Chara at noon today. While some will no doubt see this as an open-and-shut case of Chara committing overt assault on Montreal forward Max Pacioretty, who was hospitalized as a result, it's a wee bit more complicated than that.

Really, the guilty party may be the rink as much as the 6-foot-9 Chara.

Here's what happened with 16 seconds left in the second period and the Canadiens leading the Bruins 4-0. Chara and Pacioretty both went hard after a loose puck just inside the right point in the Montreal end, and the Montreal player managed to chip the puck out towards centre ice.

The momentum of the players carried them towards the Boston bench, and towards the always-dangerous partition that separates the benches in the Montreal area. Chara clearly tried to squeeze Pacioretty into the boards even though the Habs forward didn't have the puck, but there was no elbow or contact to the head, and seemingly no malicious intent.

Maybe Chara should have known the partition was in play. But there certainly did not appear to be any effort by the massive Boston blueliner to injure Pacioretty, but rather just eliminate him from the play to avoid giving him access to the loose puck. Pacioretty, however, caught the partition with his head and neck area, and was twisted in ugly fashion to the ice, where he lay until doctors and medical staff arrived on the scene. Minutes later, he was taken off on a stretcher, with his head/neck stabilized.

Chara received an interference major and game misconduct, and to be sure, he definitely interfered with Pacioretty. But at the same time, if the collision had happened on the side of the rink without the benches, it would have just been a garden variety rub-out into the glass, and maybe even an infraction the officials ignore.

For years, many have worried about the way in which the partition between benches in NHL rinks and in other leagues is positioned and padded. At a time when the league and players union are considering all safety related issues coincidentally Campbell and the NHL operations staff met in New York for the first time Tuesday afternoon with newly hired NHLPA official Mathieu Schneider - this could certainly be added to the list. NHL general managers will meet Monday in Florida, and you can bet this incident will be added to a long agenda.

Montreal fans will be screaming for Chara's scalp on this one, and the messy, violent games between the two clubs this season have heated up the rivalry between the two clubs. The Bruins, who have seen their players, notably Patrice Bergeron and Marc Savard, severely injured by illegal or quasi-legal hits in recent seasons, will argue that Chara cannot be held accountable for which part of the rink a collision takes part in.

This incident will also involve another ongoing debate in NHL circles relating to the head shot problem, and that's whether a player delivering a hit carries all the responsibility for the effect of a hit, or whether the player absorbing the hit has to carry some responsibiity if he is injured for putting himself in a vulnerable position.

So is Chara to blame for running Pacioretty into the partition? There is no specific penalty for that offence, and the hit was not from behind. Then again, it's roughly akin to running an opponent into a goalpost and injuring him, which would definitely be suspendable.

Or is it up the Montreal player to be more aware? Should Pacioretty have pulled up rather than put himself at risk? There's also the suggestion of some bad blood between the two players relating to an incident at the end of a Jan. 8 game.

All is all, this is a tricky, multi-layered problem for the NHL operations department, specifically Murphy, and his decision will, you can bet, leave either the Habs or Bruins enraged.

It looked to these eyes like a fairly basic hockey play gone terribly wrong, mostly because it happened at the worst possible place on the rink possible.

The good news is that early reports suggested Pacioretty will be okay. But if Chara doesn't receive a significant suspension - and it seems unlikely he would get anything more than a couple of games, if anything at all - the health of the Montreal player won't be enough to stop Habs fans from howling.

 

 

Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara (33) hits Montreal Canadiens left wing Max Pacioretty (67) into the boards during the second period of NHL hockey play in Montreal, March 8, 2011. Pacioretty was injured on the play and was taken off the ice on a stretcher. REUTERS/Shaun Best (CANADA - Tags: SPORT ICE HOCKEY IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Comments

[CN]

Blame the victim. Blame the rink. The rink didn't bring Pacioretty's head into the glass partition. Chara's ELBOW did.

[Jay]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53593598@N06/5510664759/

How can you write this without any facts. How can you say he did not make contact to the head.

As usual, your quick triggered shoddy work is embarrassing to journalists world wide.

This is coming from a Leafs fan so keep your BS bias excuse in your pocket.

Keep being controversial Damien... God knows that's the only reason you have a job.

[Karl Andersen]

"...there was no elbow or contact to the head, and seemingly no malicious intent." Though there was no contact to the head, Chara's arm does come up high and shove him forward. He is not absolved of guilt. He is not a rookie...he knows where he is on the ice. It is a suspendable hit...his intentions? I guess we can only take his words but from my point of view...it was a dirty hit.

[Brad Barber]

Chara has a long history of this type of stuff- never blatant, but always, always on the edge - the Bruins were losing so they resorted to their now usual stuff - incredibly since they have seen what the results can be...Bergeron & Savard - maybe they feel that gives them license....yes, I am a Habs fan...so upset that I cannot even watch the 3rd period - all I can think about is MAX PAC, who was clearly run into a dead end by a dead head, who uses his size to hurt people on a regular basis...

[Joel]

I will preface this with saying that as a Habs fan I do have some inherent bias in my comments. After reviewing the collision multiple times I believe Chara knew exactly what he was doing. If you look at the footage, Chara looks up at towards that area prior to hitting Pacioretty. He hits him in the last second pushing him towards that part of the rink. Maybe he was aiming for the glass but who knows. As a hockey player you know exactly how the rink is set up and where all of those danger zones are. I think he knew was he was doing. With that being said, I also think Max took a big risk putting himself into that situation. He does bare some of the responsibility as all hockey players must. However, when a player hits another player well after the play has moved on and an injury like that occurs it must be looked at diligently. It wasn't a dirty play necessarily but the league needs to look at it and make a call either way with plays like this. If it's a hit into the bench, the goal, or anywhere a player could get injured it must be met with some serious contemplation on how penalties (if any) or supplemental discipline is handed out (if any). My guess, if he does get suspended, is that it will be a game or two max. But I doubt it.

[WhoRYou]

Look at the replay again. Chara clearly pushes Pacioretty's head with his elbow. Doesn't matter though, Chara said he didn't mean to drive Pacioretty's head into the board so the league will believe him and he will get off with little if any repurcussions. GO NHL GO!!!!!

[john d]

Last game Chara put a beating on Pacioretty and slashed him in the ankle. Obvious bad blood from the Jan 8th push Pacioretty gave Chara after scoring in OT. Funny how everyone is quick to give Chara the benefit of the doubt. Julien sent his boys out to avenge a KO Pouliot had on Kreci (which Kreci instigated). White is called for instigating a fight...hmmmm what was called when 3 Bruins jumped the habs at the end of the February game.

But the habs are designated the cheap ones for talking and diving...how messed up is that.....

[Andy]

Well Damien, better get your eyes checked, cause in these eyes, it was totally obvious interference with the *obvious* intent to rub 67's face in something, somewhere. And if that's just a "hockey play", then I don't know what kind of hockey you play. Nobody but Chara to blame for all of what happened. His goonery is masked by his otherwise stellar play, but make no mistake, the man is a world class goon.

[Bukator]

A nasty outcome resulting from a hard hockey play. Yes it's interference. No there's nothing in the rules beyond that. No suspension. BUT, this needs to be looked at. Who is to blame? If it's Chara, then should there be a rule tweak and suspensions in the future? If so, instate the rule immediately. (It can be done, see the Avery Rule) Should the NHL mandate that this area of the rink be altered (padded post, rounded glass towards bench) for safety? Freak accidents happen in all sports but it seems an attempt could be made to reduce the risk of this particular incident occurring.

[Gary]

i don't see how Chara can get suspended due to a stanchion..i wonder why these things are more protective of the players. i am shocked how this kind of things doesn't happen more often but to give Chara a suspension cause you think he did it purposely is outrageous. i could careless about either of these teams but i think Collie will cave to media pressure to suspend Chara cause the media gets what it wants these days!!

p.s imagine hab fans if this was Hal gill doing this to say Seguin would you want Hal suspended i think not!

[Mark]

Damien, perhaps you should take another look at the hit, and explain the position of Chara's forearm on Pacioretty's head, effectively riding him into the glass partition. The tendency is to blame the rink, the speed of the game, and everything else before taking a close look at the veteran Chara, who most probably has a 3D scale model of Montreal's Bell Center embedded in his brain's memory center! Don't play us as fools, and expect us to believe that he wasn't aware of what he was doing. The reason why the NHL cannot resolve the head shots issue is because it refuses to admit that players, like Chara in this instance, DO sometimes want to cause injuries...

[Marc]

I remember Al Iafrate's run-in with the turnbuckle in the 80's. Those things have always been dangerous.

[Ron Burgundy]

Chara has never been a dirty player his whole career. If he has a problem with you, the former boxer will go up to your face, ask to fight, and if you nod 'yes', he will beat the living snot out of you. If Chara hit him like that just a few micro-seconds earlier or a few micro-seconds later, Pacioretty would be face down in a team's bench. It was a classic case of 'wrong place at the wrong time' and even though the injury itself may warrant Chara a suspension, the league better not suspend him on intent to injure or else every hit (and fight) in the league should be reviewed .

[forskis]

Sorry, as a Habs fan I must disagree with your assessment of there being "no intent"....if it was a rub out play, Chara had Pacioretty dead to rights, clean and no problem there...the problem is that as they are along the boards, Chara raises his arms and pushes up high on Pacioretty as they slide along the boards and into the stanchion....Why would Chara need the additional high shove on a basic rub out play that he clearly perfectly executed UP TO THAT POINT?

[Guest]

Chara should have known better. Give him 5 games.

The Canadiens should have known better than to build unsafe partitions in their arena. Fine them $250,000.

[Arthur]

Well, Damien, was it interference or not? You seem to be wishy-washy on the issue.

In some jurisdictions, if a death occurs during an illegal activity, it becomes a murder charge regardless of intent.

apply that here. Regardless of Chara's intent, he committed an interference infraction which led to a player being hurt. Should automatically upgrade the offense.

[Rich T]

I see Cox is part of the "Colie is a good guy" media camp. So meting out the decision will be failed Leafs coach Mike Murphy. Awesome. Hey Geoff Molson, just forfeit the season. The NHL has zero respect for the Habs. They just want the big revenue the team generates to fund Bettman's welfare cases in the sunbelt.

[Will Dickinson]

Please people take a deep breath. This is simply a case of a defenseman who had a pucked chipped out of the zone behind him. Never the most fleet footed player in the league Chara has two options, one he can try to race Pacioretty for the puck (good luck) or two do what every defenseman in the league does when beaten, interfere with the guy. If this play happens 5 feet down the boards, it is simply a 2 minute garden variety penalty. It was nothing but bad luck that Pacioretty hit the turnbuckle. Since he was hurt and it was head injury it becomes an automatic 5 minute and a game. The proper call was made on the ice and there should be no further suspension.

Oh and all the guys calling Chara a goon are you kidding? I'm a Leaf fan and even I can say that Chara does not play dirty. The guy if he wanted to could single handly destroy the entire league. This was just an unlucky and unfortunate play. Hopefully, Pacioretty will make a full recovery and soon.

[Roy]

This column needs to expand on the bad blood between Chara and Pacioretty by describing the exact incident on the Jan 8 game and the beatdown game (and a two-handed slash by Charato Pacioretty's ankle ) that followed. Only by providing greater details on these incidents can the context of the hit be fully understood. It may also be helpful to provide this context near the start rather than at the end.

[tony nardi]

It would be absolutely disgraceful, unconscionable and negligent if the League did not hand Chara a hefty suspension. The interference happened once Chara cut Pacioretty's route and made contact with him AFTER Pacioretty had already disposed of the puck. The injury happened as a result of CHARA staying with Pacioretty once contact was made and to FINISH, COMPLETE, a hit seconds after the interference.

How is a player (Pacioretty) supposed to anticipate that kind of interference? What planet are we on?

The NHL should not look at the severity of the injury (which now seems to be less serious than initially imagined) but at the viciousness and seriousness of Chara's intent. It doesn't matter what team you're pulling for, all teams, all players, and all fans should deplore this act and the League's long-standing failure to control it. The image that came to mind when it happened is obviously the horrific scene at the Vancouver winter Olympics last year. If the NHL had done it's job, acted responsibly, and taken care of the problem when Gary Suter crosschecked and hit from behind Wayne Gretzky in the 1991 Canada Cup we would not be in this situation today. The League should have suspended Bertuzzi for life. It didn't. The man he punched repeatedly while he lay on the ice was not a saint but did not deserve to have his hockey career ended by a thug. Gretsky, after Suter's hit, was not the same player, notwithstanding the many great years he played after it. If the NHL reads their own NHL site and the many comments and this one, it should take the clear message from many that hockey fans get no enjoyment from what happened tonight. None. It is criminal for the League to watch by the sidelines and not send a message to thug-like, violent, vicious on-ice behaviour. SUSPEND CHARA FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON. PERIOD.

[Dan Car]

I really hope you don't believe what you just wrote....

I hope you are just looking for 'hits'

The ones you want don't hurt, do they?

[Andrew]

Dirty play and a hit to the head. We've already lost Crosby for significant time due to head hits that have been IGNORED. I guess we can add Paccioretty to the list. I hope the NHL doesn't take your view Damien. Normally you're on point, but not on this one. After the number of careers that have been ended, Head hits should be taken a lot more seriously.

[AL]

This was clearly an attempt to injury Pacioretty. This neanderthal Chara ran Garbovski twice in one game and luckily he was not seriously injured.I feel he should be suspended just like Bertuzzi and go through the same punishment as well.Chira has not been scoring goals and is suffering from goal depression.How else to take out your anger.Run someone!!

[dolphantasy]

First off, since when does lack of intent mean you don't get punished for a crime? Manslaughter is when you kill someone without intent - it's still a crime, but the sentence is reduced. Just as intent should carry weight in terms of the punishment, so should the result of the play, including any and all injuries.

Secondly, why is the person handing out discipline in the league at all associated with the game? Why should they be a former player, coach or anything else? The league says that person needs to understand what is a "hockey play" which is crap. By this same logic, all judges should be prior criminals or crime bosses.

The league thinks it's sh*t doesn't stink. It needs to get with the program

[Ryan]

If Chris Simon did this, the whole Hockey World would be saying "BAN HIM FOR LIFE FROM THE NHL"... But Chara is a former Norris winner which must mean he doesn't a bad bone in his body. If Chara gets less than 5 games the NHL disciplinary office is bogus. Never punish the "Stars" of the league because ratings and attendance will plummet. Who would want to see Mike Richards, Zdeno Chara, Alex Ovechkin suspended for 10 games? Not the big brass in NYC at HQ. My point is, this was a malicious hit, Chara has had a target on Max Pac since that January OT winner. Coxy, if you didn't see any contact with the head, you need to retire because as many people have pointed out, Chara's elbow guided Max Pac's head into that partition whether you like it or not. This is coming from a Leafs fan who dislikes both teams, but is a fan of hockey and knows when it is a dirty hit.