He did wave to the crowd.

Posted by PRStoetzer on 03/24/07 at 01:33 PM ET

the NHL really needs to look at crap like this and issue severe suspensions for boarding and headshots regardless of the circumstances. I’m getting sick of seeing players getting their head rammed into the boards or getting their head clobbered with an elbow or a shoulder and then getting injured. I’m also sick of the NHL not having the intestinal fortitude to issue strick punishment when these events occur. What if it happened to Sidney Corsby or Alex Ovechkin? What is it going to take, a player dying? I’m worried sick if this continues to be ignored by the NHL.

Posted by Zetterberg40rule on 03/24/07 at 01:40 PM ET

According to the Blues, VNieminen has gone to the hospital to visit Lebda.

Posted by Guy Legend on 03/24/07 at 02:41 PM ET

But Zetterberg40rule, players like Nieminen serve a valuable role for their teams by being irritating and getting stars off their games.  This is a hockey skill just like any other, and it is a physical game—unfortunately sometimes players get hurt.  You can’t take away all the physicality in the game or it won’t be hockey anymore and no one will watch it if it just looks like an all-star game with a lot of pretty passes and end-to-end play.(For my buddy Marc—how do you think your arguments sound now?)

I hope he is OK.  My first thought was “not another defenseman.”  At least he was conscious.

Posted by Baroque on 03/24/07 at 02:47 PM ET

Baroque, you can be physical and irritating to star players without ramming their faces into the boards. I’m getting sick of seeing it too, and yet I think that the physical element of hockey is one of its greatest strengths. But I think you have to draw the line somewhere.

Posted by Neil from UK on 03/24/07 at 02:58 PM ET

It just seems that this season that this kind of crap is happening more and more. I guess I have the minority opinion, but I’d rather risk less hitting if it means banning headshots and giving severe punishment for those along with boarding. I know it’s a bit of a loaded argument, but what if Tootoo were to severely injure or end Crosby’s career? The NHL just lost one of it’s best talents ever, aguably, and Neiminen still has a career. Is that really a winning situation for the league? Maybe I’m overreating but I’m getting sick of this kind of crap that’s seemingly sprawled like a wildfire around the NHL.

FTR, if Kronwall hit someone like that I’d be calling for his head too.

Posted by Zetterberg40rule on 03/24/07 at 03:07 PM ET

There’s a difference between “finishing your check” and “attempting to impale your opponent,” and most of the NHL’s players have lost the ability to make that distinction.

While Collie Campbell and the NHL’s media pull each others’ sweaters over their heads debating whether fighting has any place in the game, we keep on seeing players get knocked out from high, hard hits that show no respect for opposing players. 

I don’t believe the players who claim that no one ever turned their body toward the boards to play the puck in “old time hockey.”  I believe that players knew when to let up and “seal” guys to the boards to separate them from the puck with a clean bump instead of a full-speed charge.

Posted by George Malik from South Lyon, MI on 03/25/07 at 01:11 AM ET

Yet another concussion… one cant help but think of the movie quote from Gladiator, “Are you not entertained?!”.

But hey, its a tough sport as Cherry very well knows, with his one NHL game experience 40 years ago and all.

Posted by Mats from Falun, Sweden on 03/25/07 at 04:59 AM ET