Kerry Fraser had a pretty in-depth look at it. Makes some good points.
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After a closer look, given the stutter-step executed by Wideman at the last second prior to impact, I have to believe that the Calgary defenceman really didn’t see the linesman until a collision was imminent and did not strike Henderson with intent to injure. If that was the case, an automatic suspension of at least 20 games would be imposed.
Given the finishing push, I don’t believe that Wideman should be given a pass either.
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Quote:
While I believe contact at this point was unavoidable, I do not accept or condone the finishing push of Wideman’s hands that exacerbated the degree of impact and caused a hard fall to the ice by the linesman.
I would ask Wideman why he didn’t bear hug the defenseless linesman to minimize the contact. Why didn’t he decelerate his forward motion in any way to reduce the impact? Finally, I would ask why he felt it necessary to extend his arms and finish the contact with a strong push on the back of linesman Henderson.
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http://www.tsn.ca/c-mon-ref-a-former...ident-1.429965