Quote:
Originally Posted by Robbob
There was a lot of nastiness that game. The boarding on Duclair, the kneeing on Accari, hit on Barkov, and Bennet's boarding. If this becomes a long series then the team coming out will have paid a hell of a price. As it has been mentioned this is the MO that got Sam in the doghouse with coaches.
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I very much doubt it.
I don't think coaches are quite as nearsighted and reliant on confirmation bias as the general fan. Sam Bennett takes bad penalties
sometimes. He also just generally takes penalties as a result of the way he plays the game. He was no worse for minor penalties on the Flames than guys like Backlund, Tkachuk, Gio, Andersson, or even Mangiapane (to name a few).
It's never mattered to some fans what the actual story is. The hit was definitely nasty and deserves a suspension. End of the day, though, that's the result of the way Bennett plays the game, and the way he plays the game is why he's been so popular in Florida in general and specifically with Q. As we've seen, when he's playing that way, he gets good results.
He got two points, led the team in blocks and takeaways, put up a good amount of shots and hits and was second only to Barkov for forwards icetime despite taking the two minors. There were also two other guys who took non-coincidental minors and Vatrano got a coincidental for embellishment. It's the way things go.
People talking like this is why coaches don't trust him are desperately reaching for something that makes this trade ok. Bennett just put up two points while playing a huge role in the playoffs for another team. It's tough to admit we messed up, but one bad penalty in the 3rd doesn't make it any less necessary to do so.