[PST] Quarter Finals: Montreal Canadiens vs. Winnipeg Jets - HABS WIN SERIES 4-0

[FlamesAddiction]

I have no problem going for the hit instead of trying to poke the puck away, but it did look like charging and caused an injury. That makes it suspension worthy IMO.

Sure hope Evans pulls through without long lasting effects.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1400298900175548421

Sean Avery with a terrible take on Twitter?

I'm shocked. Absolutely shocked.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

[CASe333]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

You know they introduced a change to icing to avoid unnecessary violent collisions, right?

Exactly, to avoid these type of split second decisions where players made the wrong decisions over and over again. They had to make a rule change because of human nature.

The angle showing him change trajectories is damning but in the split second when he had the choice to dive into the net/post or hit Evans I still think its human nature to make the decision he did. In retrospect its reckless but in the heat of the moment I really don't think it was malicious.

[FlamesAddiction]

Apparently Evans is not in the hospital and is alert, but being out cold like that, they must have to put him on concussion protocol. I've heard stories of people getting concussed and not realizing it for a couple of days.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by CASe333

Exactly, to avoid these type of split second decisions where players made the wrong decisions over and over again. They had to make a rule change because of human nature.



The angle showing him change trajectories is damning but in the split second when he had the choice to dive into the net/post or hit Evans I still think its human nature to make the decision he did. In retrospect its reckless but in the heat of the moment I really don't think it was malicious.

After watching the entire sequence from the puck-clear it looks obvious to me that Scheifele is committed to the hit long before Evans is even finished coming around the net.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by CASe333

Exactly, to avoid these type of split second decisions where players made the wrong decisions over and over again. They had to make a rule change because of human nature.

The angle showing him change trajectories is damning but in the split second when he had the choice to dive into the net/post or hit Evans I still think its human nature to make the decision he did. In retrospect its reckless but in the heat of the moment I really don't think it was malicious.

Nope, looked like he decided the goal was happening he was going and if it was going to be scored, he was taking his pound of flesh

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

Nope, looked like he decided the goal was happening he was going and if it was going to be scored, he was taking his pound of flesh

Based on his behaviour earlier in the game, I have to suspect the only thing going through his head was ‘RAWWWRRR!!!’ The body was engaged, but the brain had a controller failure.

(This is not an excuse of any kind. He flipped his lid, he should pay. I just don't think it will help much to look at the video frame by frame and try to read his mind, because it's highly likely there was nobody home.)

[Ragnar]

Any kind of stick check might result in a goal. Not sure why a clean hit is being vilified other than the injury. Tough to see but there's not much to do in a split second decision when Evans is wrapping it around. Obvious people will cry purely because of the injury.

[Ragnar]

Not sure why "looking for a big hit" is such an issue? Is that not part of the game if its clean? Would love to see Tkachuk or Gio try for that hit when an empty netter may happen and the game is lost.

[Itse]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Can’t agree. Look at this angle:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1400289762846650368

He’s actually moving away from the net to try and hit him.

Yeah there's no split second decision there. All his focus is on destroying Evans, he commits early on, puts his shoulder down and forward and then throws his body towards the hit at the moment of contact to put some extra juice into it. It's only physics in the sense that yes if you make that push motion with your body, the legs might leave the ice... But if you push late enough, you might get away with it, as it's not specifically mentioned in the rulebook, unlike jumping, even though it's the same thing in practice. You just jump into the player at the moment of contact instead of just before the contact. The player you hit stops your body/feet from leaving the ice in the way the rulebook mentions.

So this hit is really a pretty good example of why the NHL rulebook is badly written, overly focused on details.

He clearly does not care of he hits the head or if it's an illegal hit or a dangerous hit.

It even looks like he might have been trying to get the head but just missed.

In case this should be an easy suspension. Scumbag play.

Of course DOPS is a joke and nothing matters.

[Ragnar]

Originally Posted by Itse

Yeah there's no split second decision there. All his focus is on destroying Evans, he commits early on, puts his shoulder down and forward and then pushes up with his legs at the moment of contact to put some extra juice into it. It's only physics in the sense that yes if you push up with your legs the legs will likely leave the ice... But if you push late enough, you might get away with it. He clearly does not care of he hits the head or if it's an illegal hit or a dangerous hit.

It even looks like he might have been trying to get the head but just missed.

In case this should be an easy suspension. Scumbag play.

Of course DOPS is a joke and nothing matters.

Bull sh*t. shoulder to shoulder, clean hit. Scheif took one stride from the top of the circle, and even that was a half stride. Of course he was trying for the hit, which is legal in NHL hockey. Not sure why half the board is crying about this??? Should we ban hitting???? WAAAAAA

[Itse]

In other news, Montreal never gets credit for anything.

They're not as bad as their regular season.

[Itse]

Originally Posted by Ragnar

Bull sh*t. shoulder to shoulder, clean hit. Scheif took one stride from the top of the circle, and even that was a half stride. Of course he was trying for the hit, which is legal in NHL hockey. Not sure why half the board is crying about this??? Should we ban hitting???? WAAAAAA

LOL, way to make yourself sound like a joke.

[calgarybornnraised]

Originally Posted by Freddy

I think Evans put himself into a very vulnerable position to score a playoff insurance goal on his birthday and Scheifele is a bit psychopathic in his savvy devastating hit that was meant to impact a 7 game series, not this one game. It’s a gamble in both players minds in a fraction of a second.

I think you give Hockey players too much credit.

[dissentowner]

There is no way he gets the series or as many games as some think here. It was a charge that led to an injury but other than that the hit is clean. Scheifele has no prior record, he will get 1 game, maybe 2 at most.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by neo45

Call me an awful person but I’m having trouble seeing anything other than a two minute charge here

“Playing the puck” here is really tough. More likely to just score on your own net if you slide


Maurice having to defend this after his diva show last year is going to be funny to watch though. But I honestly see this as a minor penalty with a bad outcome and zero intent

If he dives and knocks the net off Rule 25.1 would have kicked in and Evans would have been awarded a goal. If he dives and the puck bounces of his stick and in there would have been a goal as well. He basically had 3 legitimate options.

1) dive to try to stop the puck with his stick but stop his body momentum before knocking the net off. Barring that rely on the ref to not award a goal under 25.1 if he knocked the net off.
2) accept that Evans was going to score and coast back
3) try to separate Evans from the puck with a body check or hope that the potential of body contact prevented Evans from trying to score

He choose option 3. Option 1 was definitely another option.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

There is no way he gets the series or as many games as some think here. It was a charge that led to an injury but other than that the hit is clean. Scheifele has no prior record, he will get 1 game, maybe 2 at most.

Not intent to injure? That is a rule too.

[GS Skier]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

There is no way he gets the series or as many games as some think here. It was a charge that led to an injury but other than that the hit is clean. Scheifele has no prior record, he will get 1 game, maybe 2 at most.

I'm first off shocked that the perpetrator is Mr Clean himself, the guy doesn't even swear!

2nd It sure looks like shoulder pad to head. How is that a "clean" hit?

[Jason14h]

Originally Posted by GS Skier

I'm first off shocked that the perpetrator is Mr Clean himself, the guy doesn't even swear!

2nd It sure looks like shoulder pad to head. How is that a "clean" hit?

I don't think many (any?) are saying he targeted his head TBH

It is that he clearly wanted to hurt him instead of make a hockey play.

This is something that 20 years ago was relatively fine but the culture of the game has changed.

Every sport is removing the 'borderline legal but only intent is to injure a player' plays.

Football has spent years trying to balance aggression vs intent to injure.

I can easily see people arguing this was a 'clean' hit - In fact I am leaning towards it being a 'clean' hit.

HOWEVER - A clean hit with the sole purpose to injure a player is something the league has been trying to remove from the game.

This is as textbook of an example of "Hit to Injure" as I have ever witnessed in the sport.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by GS Skier

I'm first off shocked that the perpetrator is Mr Clean himself, the guy doesn't even swear!

2nd It sure looks like shoulder pad to head. How is that a "clean" hit?

Nope...he doesn't get the head directly.

If he had, Evans head wouldn't whip the other way like it did. If the head was first contact it would have gone in the direction of the shoulder that hit it, it went the other way.

The hit itself was perfectly legal, but the way he got there to deliver it is way over the line. The guy skated, quite literally, at full speed from about 150' away in an attempt to stop the goal. When he realized he wasn't getting there in time, he switched intent to blow Evans up. The worst example of charging I remember.

I agree with dissentowner....2 games. The whole intent to injure thing, while true to a degree, requires one to believe that was his goal from the start when he was winding up from MTL's end. I don't think anyone can make that argument.