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Originally Posted by Igottago
Looks bad if all you see is a gif but given the broader context its purely accidental...
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I don't believe this is at all obvious. There is certainly lots of room to question Wideman's intent.
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Just one of those things where he had his bell rung and unexpectedly ran into someone on the way to the bench, and put his hands up as a gut reaction.
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That is one way of looking at it, but there are others. It IS possible that this was purely intentional, borne from whatever frustration Wideman experienced following the hit. It IS possible that he intended the hit, but did not realise he was hitting an official. It IS also possible that he inadvertently ran into the linesman, and reacted instinctively by hitting him with his stick.
I think in the end that regardless of where one falls on this, at minimum Wideman should be expected to bear some responsibility for having hit the official with his stick, and for the injury sustained by the official because of the hit. I would bet that the League comes out heavily in favour of the official, which likely means that Wideman will endure a lengthy suspension.