In knowing that who I'm scolding is the vocal minority, I must say that I'm not surprised. I'm just...disappointed. To think that there are actually people primarily concerned with maintaining some antiquated definition of "toughness" as hockey has gotten more and more entertaining with the influx of young kids with superior skill playing at a much more fluid pace that allows for the type of awe-inspiring moves that...well...put Mike Matheson's ankles in a blender is a real let down. To be clear, I don't think the follow through on the hit in question was as bad as it looked. It certainly wasn't necessary, or a hockey play, or really anything other than a overreaction to being put in the spin cycle by a teenager, but not all that bad nonetheless. Unfortunately the result, being the type of head injury that leaves a player susceptible to more head injuries that over time have proven to have a deteriorating effect on their quality of life, absolutely was. Hockey is a violent sport, and as such concussions can be an occupational hazard of signing up to play it professionally, but - seeing as we're not talking about some beer league - they definitely shouldn't be an occupational hazard of making someone look stupid with a slippery move in the corner. Mike Matheson wasn't finishing his check when he flung Elias Pettersson to the ice. The check was already completed. What he was doing was finishing his tantrum. Retaliation, especially that which comes as a response to nothing more than hurt feelings, is not a sign of physical toughness. If anything, it's a sign of mental weakness. Acting on behalf of one's bruised ego might be a time honored tradition in highly competitive sports, but so was actively ignoring the tragic toll taken by repetitive blows to the head and I think we've (finally) come to the conclusion that's one we can do without. You run a red light, you get a ticket. You run a red light and get into an accident, you get a more substantial ticket and higher insurance rate. You run a red light and get into an accident that kills another driver, you better hope you have a suspiciously strong grip on soap. In almost every walk of life, results determine discipline. To believe the NHL should be different solely because it used to be different is just as stupid as continuing to use a Walkman because that's the way you used to listen to music. Look, if Elias Pettersson had the body of a man then we probably aren't taking about this play as anything more than a missed minor penalty, but to think the solution is to ban boys from the NHL is to be comically ignorant of the state of the league. A significant chunk of the players that people will pay to watch are better off using their trading card to get into a bar, because the date on their ID's ain't making the cut. To put it bluntly, the Mike Matheson's of the world aren't putting one single ass in one single seat. Two games might seem like a lot for the act in and of itself, but - as a reminder that you accept the risk of the result when you play on the edge of the rules - it's a small price to pay for unintentionally diminishing the viewing experience of fans that have been swoon by the skill-set of Elias Pettersson.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Categories
All
Archives
January 2020
|