Once Bitten. . .Updated

VANCOUVER--A suspension for biting in the Stanley Cup final? It hardly seems likely.

So while Alex Burrows of the Canucks certainly did appear to be snacking on the right index finger of Boston's Patrice Bergeron during a scrum at the end of the first period in Game 1 on Wednesday, NHL precedent suggests Burrows may get a talking to from NHL authorities today, but no more.

(Ed note: NHL announced at 2:40 EST that Burrows would not be suspended. "I can find no conclusive evidence that Alex Burrows intentionally bit the finger of Patrice Bergeron," said NHL senior vice-president Mike Murphy in a statement. Burrows wasn't available to comment, while Bergeron said: "It's the league's decision. . .he did it. . .but I guess I'm over it.)

That's not to say the NHL wouldn't possibly do anything. In January, 2009, Ottawa's Jarkko Ruutu was suspended two games for chomping down on one of Buffalo enforcer Andrew Peters' digits. Like Burrows, Ruutu used the he-stuck-his-fingers-in-my-mouth excuses, but the league wasn't buying it. As well, Burrows does have a bit of a history with league authorities for borderline incidents in the past.

But the Ruutu incident was in a regular season game and this is the Final. Given the things that other players have gotten away with in these playoffs - Andrew Ference's deliberate head shot on Montreal's Jeff Halpern jumps to mind - any kind of stiff action against Burrows would be a surprise.

Complicating the matter somewhat is the fact that ex-Leaf coach Mike Murphy, a key executive in the league's hockey operations, will preside over this case. Murphy was appointed to be in charge of supplementary discipline when, as has always been the case, Colin Campbell recused himself because the series involves his son, Gregory, who plays for Boston. Funny, by the way, how no one questioned that system in the six years Gregory was playing for Florida, but once he was moved to Boston it became a terrible conflict in the eyes of some.

In the hours before Game 1, it was announced that Campbell would be stepping aside entirely in that disciplinarian role next season, giving way to Brendan Shanahan, who will head the league's new Department of Player Safety and mete out suspensions.

Ever suspicious Vancouver fans might like that change to happen sooner. Don't forget, just last year Murphy was criticized in these parts for once being quoted as saying he would like to see the Los Angeles Kings win a Stanley Cup some day, mostly because he once played for the Kings and understood the ups and downs of that franchise over the years.

Those mild quotes were regurgitated by Vancouver conspiracy theorists last April when Murphy disallowed a goal from the Toronto war office by Daniel Sedin against the Kings in a playoff series. The fact Murphy also once worked for the Canucks didn't slow the runaway logic of these theorists.

If Murphy were to rule against Burrows, you can bet the same old stuff would be dredged up again. 

Murphy is one of the most respected people in the league's office, but has been a target on other occasions. Oddly enough, it was a Los Angeles executive, GM Dean Lombardi, who took a run at Murphy earlier this year after Murphy allowed a winning goal scored by a Phoenix player against the Kings to stand.

While Canuck fans and some media had accused Murphy of being pro-L.A., Lombardi accused him of being bitter towards the Kings because he had been passed over for the GM job several years earlier.

For his sheer idiocy, Lombardi was fined $50,000 by the league. But Murphy's experiences surely tell you what lengths some will go to in order to claim the league doesn't want their team to win. In the Burrows case, if any action were to be taken against the Vancouver winger by Murphy, you can bet some in the Vancouver media would also raise the issue of Boston's Zdeno Chara not being suspended for his controversial hit on Max Pacioretty of Montreal earlier this season, a decision that Murphy made after consulting with no fewer than 25 other hockey people within and without league headquarters. The dim-witted took the non-suspension, of course, as evidence that Campbell was still calling the shots behind the scenes to favour his son's team, and even though he has now stepped aside, that wouldn't stop some from raising that allegation again.

It's the same nonsense Shanahan is going to have to deal with once he takes over.

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[othermark]

Yes, there is a long a storied history of crack pot conspiracy theory types out there. Of course, my personal favourite is the Leafs being eliminated by Wayne Gretzky and the King in 1993. Of course the league office was horrified at the prospect of an all Canadian final with Leafs/Habs and infatuated with the idea of having their marquee player "the Great One" hoisting the cup for the Kings (the jewel of west coast expansion). So, Kerry Frasier (he of the hair) turns a blind eye to various Kings infractions and leaves Gretzky out of the box to finish off the Leafs. I still run into people who swear by that conspiracy. The thing is, some people will take quotes of wishful thinking and turn them into acts of willful doing. That's why Campbell and Murphy get into hot water. They occassional let us hear what they would like to see happen. The conspiracy types pick up a sound bite and jump to huge conclusions. Maybe someone like Ken Dryden or John Ferguson Jr. would be better in the role. Both could speak endlessly without actually saying anything.

[LAPS]

Why would he get suspended? The NHL has demonstrated that they support barbarism in the league, and the players have demonstrated that they don't respect one another.

[Mark Stuart]

Did you ever think to ask how the finger came to be in his mouth?... Damien, if YOUR finger ever ended up in MY mouth, I can guarantee you'd be talking it home in your pocket!...

[Jeff Prince]

Damien, what about the diving in the game last night? Why not fine Henrik for his post-whistle flop? I have never seen this kind of behaviour in the finals before and it makes me want to turn my tv off.

[2nd Guess]

Didn't the Canucks already get a mulligan in these playoffs -- when Torres delivered his blatant headshot to Brent Seabrook, and the league office excused it because it took place in a "contact zone," (behind the net) or some similar kind of ridiculous reasoning?

For a fan base that also watched Todd Bertuzzi walk away with a laughably lenient 20-game suspension for ending another player's career, it's remarkable that the "Canucks Nation" could even entertain the notion of an anti-Vancouver sentiment at the league office.

[Techno viking]

I am new to the game and still learning the rules.

So, you can knock someone's head off but you can't bite the fingers.

Gotcha!

[bob howard]

The Canucks are the most classless act in the league. The diving, the biting, the yapping, the hair pulling and that elbow Kesler laid on that Predator that wasnt called. I know all Canadians are disgusted by their act. Can you imagine Toews biting someone (and this crap about his fingers being in his mouth is pure nonsense ...watch the tape and see Burrows move his head to grab at the fingers) (btw how can anyone defend the indefensable). Ever see LIndstrum dive like Sedin did....what a joke. They might win the Cup but they will forever be known in Canada as the most classless organization in all of sport. The cage fighting sport has most intregrity than the nhl has these days. I am still shocked by it. It was hard to explain to my 9 yr old why he did it and why he wasnt suspended. Nice act Burrows...you child

[T Mark]

After Campbell's "little fake artist" comments and "inappropriate" comments chasing after officials who penalized his son, it was hard for me to see any of his judgements - or any judgements from his office - as being clear of any possible taint of favoritism.