Quote:
Originally Posted by KootenayFlamesFan
Just saw the Cousins hit, that was brutal. Easy 5 and a game, you would think. Not sure what the refs were thinking there, no wonder things got out of control. Brutal job by the officiating crew.
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This is the thing people miss when describing it as a Bertuzzi-like play... it is. The Bertuzzi incident was itself also retribution for a dirty play by a dirty player that wasn't handled properly - the NHL's leading scorer sustained a hit to the head and was knocked out of action with no penalty and no suspension. It doesn't excuse Bertuzzi's actions, but the league, and the referees, were culpable too. Here, there should have been a major and a game misconduct, and there wasn't, so this happened. It's not even really surprising.
The NHL needs to take the lesson and dish out a hefty suspension to both players, and send a message that the refs got this wrong and that even if they get it wrong you cannot do what Gudbranson did.
Fortunately that's surely the only play tonight involving a dangerous hit that should lead to someone being suspended for a long period of - sorry, what's that you say about Kyle Connor?