Kukla's Korner Hockey
Next entry: Looks Like Atlanta For Tkachuk
Previous entry: You Know The Drill
Which Way To Go
by Paul on 02/25/07 at 08:56 AM ET
Comments (1)
from Joe Starkey of the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review,
But the goonery hasn’t gone away. Its insidious presence is what has the Penguins apparently pursuing hockey’s heavyweight champ, Georges Laraque—so he can “protect” Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
Surely, you don’t believe Laraque’s presence would prevent some cementhead from taking a shot at Crosby, do you?
Only the league can protect its players. Or not.
It would be so much easier to respect the NHL if it would go one way or the other.
Filed in: | KK Hockey | Permalink
Comments
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Leafs Can Improve During Free Agency Period
Early Options For NHL Teams Traveling To Europe Next season
Niklas Kronwall Out After Knee On Knee Hit By Laraque
Brian Mullen’s Heart Still With The Rangers
Dealing With A Make-Shift Lineup
Sutter Trying To Find The Fire In The Flames
Cory Stillman Out With Knee Injury
About KK Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
Email Paul anytime at
Kukla’s Korner is always a free service for readers, but it costs some money to maintain. If you’re ever in a position to donate a few dollars to help out, we’d be very appreciative.
Hockey Links
To me, the most illustrative comment in the piece is this one:
Surely, you don’t believe Laraque’s presence would prevent some cementhead from taking a shot at Crosby, do you?
If I am a coach, and have a small-impact (salary and ice time) brute on my team, I know my thoughts in this situation. I see that there is very little in the way of repercussions for me if I send him out to take out Crosby’s knee. Sure, he will get clobbered by the Penguin’s tough guy (whoever it is in this hypothetical scenario), but if the hit can be rationalized as somewhat legal, he won’t even be suspended. If I can plausibly deny that I intended to hit a star and put him out of the game, I won’t suffer either. And even if the goon I sent out is supended, so what? He has minimal impact on my team anyway, and I have weakened an opponent for weeks or months while their star is in rehab or surgery. To me, in a cut-throat business like this, it would even be worth a fine if I can improve my team’s prospects by hurting an opponent. I win this trade off and I take the chance.
And if the only solution is for the Penguins to send their goon after my team’s stars in retaliation, then after a while all the game’s stars will be injured or hurt, and the only players that will be able to display their skills are the fighters. There has to be some middle ground.
Posted by Baroque on 02/25/07 at 10:17 AM ET