Quote:
Originally Posted by sa226
I'm just going to quote this. I have watched the TSN, HNIC and SNET media reaction panels and they are all wrought with hyperbolic and ill informed reactions as to who is to blame and why.
Kevin Allen, in my opinion nails it. Hartley is not without blame, at the end of the day he could have started any other line. But Torts escalated it beyond what was really expected or called for.
|
Say Hartley starts the Hudler line. After the first whistle, he sends out the 4th line. Tortorella sees McGratton et al. out there, and sends out his 4th line to match. A line brawl ensues, and 8 guys get kicked out. The only thing different, is it's 2 minutes into the game. Is this any different than having it happen off the opening faceoff? At one point, Hartley is sending out his 4th line to take a draw. It's hockey. You need to have all four lines out there. If Vancouver felt threatened by those guys, there are several options. If Torts is scared of it, that's his problem. Is Hartley not allowed to send out his line, or is it just on the opening faceoff?