Jujhar Khaira carried off the ice on stretcher

[Winsor_Pilates]

Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14

Khaira shouldn't have been looking for the puck, he should have had his head up when he didn't receive the pass properly. He made himself defenceless.

I agree, but this will surely change in the league soon and the rules with it.
Others have already detailed it well, so I won't repeat much but I'm sure rule changes are coming that protect vulnerable players with their heads down, even if that's "their fault" by historical hockey standards.

[KootenayFlamesFan]

I'm not sure how we go from not wanting to see players scramble their brains from some of these hits, to figure skating. That's quite the leap.

[DeluxeMoustache]

I have no trouble with separating man from puck, shoulder to shoulder checks, and shoulder to chest.

That’s not figure skating

But shoulder to head? Driving through that kind of check?

Nope. Don’t want to see guys’ lives ruined. That’s not enjoyable

[Kipper_3434]

That second hit is about as clean of a devastating hit that I've seen. It really does seem like players have forgotten that the other team can hit you when you have the puck. The funny part is it looked like Mackinnon was trying to skate right through him, clearly had no idea the defenceman was right on top of him .

[KootenayFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

I have no trouble with separating man from puck, shoulder to shoulder checks, and shoulder to chest.

That’s not figure skating

But shoulder to head? Driving through that kind of check?

Nope. Don’t want to see guys’ lives ruined. That’s not enjoyable

That's where I'm at too. Love big hits, love that it's a contact sport. Loved laying out big hits when I played as a kid many moons ago. But there has to be something that can be done to make everyone happy, and not have some of these guys with their brains wrecked. I certainly don't won't hitting removed from the sport.

[Izzle]

The truth is... Players are bigger and faster. The equipment they wear is basically concrete. Having the leather equipment from back in the day would probably keep the big hits coming but maybe not as devastating. It's funny. On the one hand the equipment will likely not go back cos it's a safety issue for the players. But then on the other hand hits like this will keep coming making a mockery of said player safety issue.

[GioforPM]

This is gonna happen to McDavid one day and that’s when you will see a rule change.

[Knightslayer]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

This is gonna happen to McDavid one day and that’s when you will see a rule change.

I really doubt it as he is like Gaudreau where they seem to always have their head up.

I can remember one time Gaudreau got hit hard in open ice. Pavel Datsyuk caught him. Pretty amazing since he's been in the league for a long time and rarely ever gets hit.

[tvp2003]

It’s interesting because if you want to eliminate hits like the one on Khaira, you almost have to get rid of hits like the one on Mackinnon. Things move too quickly and the margin for error is so slim that it’s hard to have the latter without the former.

Both Khaira and Mackinnon are arguably “defenceless” because they have their head down. Also reminds me of the Dube hit on Kotkaniemi last year in Montreal (although that was moreso the player quickly changing directions and inadvertently lining himself up for a big hit).

[Reaper]

Originally Posted by Izzle

The truth is... Players are bigger and faster. The equipment they wear is basically concrete.

Concrete? That's ridiculous, the NHL has mandated soft caps on shoulder and elbow pads for years. Under those soft caps? Plastic shells. Not what is essentially man made stone.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

This is gonna happen to McDavid one day and that’s when you will see a rule change.

he will probably be the one hitting but no change

[PepsiFree]

If I can’t visibly tell someone’s brain is bleeding, that’s figure skating.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Not remotely true. The NFL still has plenty of contact. You simply can no longer hit unsuspecting players whether it be a DB on a defenseless receiver or a blind side block on a return. Those are only recent changes made because we now know that head trauma is incredibly bad for athletes. There are many totally clean hits in the game of hockey unrelated to this type of hit and we are simply discussing removing the ones like this where the player has his head down and does not see it coming.

If it were always illegal to hit players skating with their heads down, every player would skate with his head down all the time to make himself ineligible to be hit.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

If it were always illegal to hit players skating with their heads down, every player would skate with his head down all the time to make himself ineligible to be hit.

Well if they can all successfully play hockey with their heads down the entire game then good for them.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Well if they can all successfully play hockey with their heads down the entire game then good for them.

If playing with their heads down means that nobody is allowed to make contact with them and they can just skate around with the puck indefinitely, why not?

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

If playing with their heads down means that nobody is allowed to make contact with them and they can just skate around with the puck indefinitely, why not?

I always thought passing and shooting occurred in hockey but what do I know? Based on your description, this might be a rare case where you actually have accidentally been watching figure skating this entire time.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

I always thought passing and shooting occurred in hockey but what do I know? Based on your description, this might be a rare case where you actually have accidentally been watching figure skating this entire time.

When you pass the puck, it can be intercepted. If you can stickhandle for your whole shift and nobody is allowed to check you because they might hit your head (which you are using as a meat shield for that very reason), why take risks?

(There was a time, you know, when passing in hockey was actually quite rare. Before forward passing was legalized, end-to-end rushes were the usual way of scoring goals, and most goals were unassisted.)

Combine this with the Connor McDavid Right-Of-Way™ rule, and even shooting could be eliminated from the game. Just get the puck, skate up the ice, carry it right into the net, since the goalie isn't allowed to impede you either.

At this point, I am being facetious – I hope.

The point is that if you give players a guaranteed way to make themselves exempt from physical contact while carrying the puck, you are going to change the entire game beyond recognition – and for the worse. There would be a strong incentive for every team that gets a 1-0 lead to simply play keep-away for the rest of the game, just as they too often do in 3-on-3 OT at present.

Beware of creating perverse incentives.

[Bill Bumface]

I'm with Knightslayer. You have all of the remaining game to worry about punching Trouba in the face. You have a seriously injured human at your place of work, everyone should worry about if they are ok and making room for the medical staff to do their job.

I don't think you should be able to skate around with your head down as a way to protect your possession of the puck, but there needs to be something done so this isn't ok. Let the defending player straight up hug/hold the vulnerable player instead to dispossess the puck? I don't know the answer, but there has to be something that can be done so people aren't receiving life altering injuries because of a mistake they make.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

The last time this kind of thing happened was during the Great Depression. There were cases where a franchise was granted permission to miss an entire season, but never after the season had started. On the rare occasions where a team suspended operations in mid-schedule, they were punished with the revocation of their franchise. The Chicago Blackhawks once played half a season in a near-empty arena in Windsor, Ontario, to avoid that outcome.

Of course, I don't know what the current franchise agreement between the NHL and its member clubs looks like (nor, probably, does anyone else other than Bettman, Daly, their lawyers, and the owners). But I imagine there would be many millions of dollars in forfeits to be paid, and the Coyotes' franchise might revert to the league.

Originally Posted by Jay Random

When you pass the puck, it can be intercepted. If you can stickhandle for your whole shift and nobody is allowed to check you because they might hit your head (which you are using as a meat shield for that very reason), why take risks?

(There was a time, you know, when passing in hockey was actually quite rare. Before forward passing was legalized, end-to-end rushes were the usual way of scoring goals, and most goals were unassisted.)

Combine this with the Connor McDavid Right-Of-Way™ rule, and even shooting could be eliminated from the game. Just get the puck, skate up the ice, carry it right into the net, since the goalie isn't allowed to impede you either.

At this point, I am being facetious – I hope.

The point is that if you give players a guaranteed way to make themselves exempt from physical contact while carrying the puck, you are going to change the entire game beyond recognition – and for the worse. There would be a strong incentive for every team that gets a 1-0 lead to simply play keep-away for the rest of the game, just as they too often do in 3-on-3 OT at present.

Beware of creating perverse incentives.

Between this and the other quoted post from the Arizona thread, I have one question for you...


Just how old ARE you?

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

If it were always illegal to hit players skating with their heads down, every player would skate with his head down all the time to make himself ineligible to be hit.

Not a problem. Since you are looking down all the time you won't be able to see your linemates to dish the puck, nor assess the ice ahead of you so defenders will easily be able to come out of your sightlines and take the puck off your stick.