Injury Report: Adam Erne hit on Jonathan Drouin | Drouin out with a mild concussion

[Emerz]

Erne just got 5 and a game misconduct for checking from behind during the WJC team USA exhibition game.

 

[DFC]

Erne just got 5 and a game misconduct for checking from behind during the WJC team USA exhibition game.

You should never go full Erne.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Jeeze Erne. There's a reason there's a stop sign on the back of your practice jerseys. If they weren't facing Minnesota State, I'd say he's blind. I love him taking pride in being a physical player, but you can't be doing this again.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

Chris Peters ‏@chrismpeters 30 min
Adam Erne gets a five-minute major and a game misconduct for checking from behind. Was in flow of play, just bad timing.

Chris Peters ‏@chrismpeters 26 min
For the record, Erne's hit in this game nothing like controversial hit on Jonathan Drouin. Bang-bang play, bad result.

Jeff Kiecker ‏@jeffkiecker 24 min
@chrismpeters most msu fans thought it was a weak call. Too bad the kid was tossed for that.

 

[Rabid Ranger]

I saw the play. Not malicious, but the NCAA really clamps down on these types of plays.

 

[chasespace]

Sucks he did it again but it's good that it seems like it was just a hockey play that went bad. Hopefully this helps him learn not to do that now instead of having to learn it after he's a pro.

 

[AllAbout813]

Erne will figure it out. But i am happy to have another physical prospect like him in the system to offset some of our more finesse guys. He just needs to learn how to make the legal hits (dashon goldson anyone???).

 

[CupsOverCash]

Erne will figure it out. But i am happy to have another physical prospect like him in the system to offset some of our more finesse guys. He just needs to learn how to make the legal hits (dashon goldson anyone???).

Agree completely. I love that we have a physical prospect like him. I just had a problem with how he handled it with the media. Couldn't have done it any worse.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

There's nothing to change in his game.

The Drouin hit made the news and was a huge deal because it was Drouin. If it had been any other player from his team, you wouldn't have even heard about it.

If Tampa expects him to change how he plays, I hope they trade him.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

There's nothing to change in his game.

The Drouin hit made the news and was a huge deal because it was Drouin. If it had been any other player from his team, you wouldn't have even heard about it.

If Tampa expects him to change how he plays, I hope they trade him.

When he enters the league, he will already have a suspension on his resume, agree or disagree with the ruling Shanny made on the Sobotka incident.

Players like him play on the edge. 2 hits like this and the one on Drouin can't be an often occurrence. So yes he has to change and learn. Some of that comes with maturity and experience to learn to walk that line and try not to continually cross it.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

When he enters the league, he will already have a suspension on his resume, agree or disagree with the ruling Shanny made on the Sobotka incident.

Players like him play on the edge. 2 hits like this and the one on Drouin can't be an often occurrence. So yes he has to change and learn. Some of that comes with maturity and experience to learn to walk that line and try not to continually cross it.

I don't call it an occurence when he has never been suspended in his junior career.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

I don't call it an occurence when he has never been suspended in his junior career.

I mean it can't become an often occurrence in the NHL because he will be judged harsher than he has in the Q. Shanaban will come down on him as a repeat offender, and refs will build a reputation on him.

We've seen it before with Downie. Now Downs was a fan favorite here. He was loved by us and his teammates. We didn't want him to stop hitting people, or being his pesty self, or doing any of the other things we love'd about him, but he had to learn to smarten up and control himself better. It will be the same with Erne who has said he wants to be like Scott Hartnell.

I don't want him to stop going hard, but he can't hit people from behind.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

I mean it can't become an often occurrence in the NHL because he will be judged harsher than he has in the Q. Shanaban will come down on him as a repeat offender, and refs will build a reputation on him.

We've seen it before with Downie. Now Downs was a fan favorite here. He was loved by us and his teammates. We didn't want him to stop hitting people, or being his pesty self, or doing any of the other things we love'd about him, but he had to learn to smarten up and control himself better. It will be the same with Erne who has said he wants to be like Scott Hartnell.

I don't want him to stop going hard, but he can't hit people from behind.

I don't see how you can compare Downie to Erne...

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

I don't see how you can compare Downie to Erne...

Both are players who play on that edge. Both players will be loved by bolt fans for doing so, but have to make sure they don't go over it more times than not.

Like Downie, I don't want Erne to change his style. What Erne does is what makes him an interesting prospect. That's what makes him special and successful. I don't want him to stop going hard, playing physical, or being a mean sob to play against. It's not an easy thing to do, but he has to learn to control that side of his game better.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

Both are players who play on that edge. Both players will be loved by bolt fans for doing so, but have to make sure they don't go over it more times than not.

Like Downie, I don't want Erne to change his style. What Erne does is what makes him an interesting prospect. That's what makes him special and successful. I don't want him to stop going hard, playing physical, or being a mean sob to play against. It's not an easy thing to do, but he has to learn to control that side of his game better.

What Downie did in the past is nothing compared to what Erne did...

Nothing worth of mention in 4 junior years and you say he should control himself more?

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

What Downie did in the past is nothing compared to what Erne did...

I'm not sure how you're missing my point here.

Nothing worth of mention in 4 junior years and you say he should control himself more?

After concussing a player by hitting him in the way he did and then a few weeks later getting tossed again for checking from behind again, yes. Absolutely.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

I'm not sure how you're missing my point here.

After concussing a player by hitting him in the way he did and then a few weeks later getting tossed again for checking from behind again, yes. Absolutely.

I saw him hit another player like he did to Drouin this year and he didn't give him a concussion, didn't get a penalty either and didn't make the news! It's unfortunate that Drouin had a concussion but it was a hockey play going bad. Push from behind near the board are common and they don't usually result in concussions, they're made to get the puck from the player. Most often, players stiffen themselves so it doesn't result in a fall.

As for the thing yesterday, many said it didn't even deserve a penalty...

You say he plays on the edge but I'd expect a player like that to have more than 144 PIMS in 165 games.

Downie had 506 in 190 games.

 

[Roz]

I saw him hit another player like he did to Drouin this year and he didn't give him a concussion, didn't get a penalty either and didn't make the news! It's unfortunate that Drouin had a concussion but it was a hockey play going bad. Push from behind near the board are common and they don't usually result in concussions, they're made to get the puck from the player. Most often, players stiffen themselves so it doesn't result in a fall.

This has been re-hashed to death, but Drouin couldn't straighten up or stiffen himself because he could not brace himself for a hit he had no idea was coming. That's why hitting from behind is so dangerous. And while pushing and shoving along the boards might be common, what Erne did to Drouin was definitely not an everyday hockey play. It's the type of hit that kids learn in peewee not to throw.

Adam Erne played with fire and got burned. Usually dirty hockey plays don't result in anything more than a minor penalty - or they go unnoticed. But every now and again a dirty play is going to **** someone up. When it does, the player has to pay the price. In Erne's case, the price is the beginnings of a reputation as a reckless hitter, and his on-ice decisions will now be filtered through that lens. His choice is to either embrace that reputation or tighten up.

 

[SergeConstantin74]

This has been re-hashed to death, but Drouin couldn't straighten up or stiffen himself because he could not brace himself for a hit he had no idea was coming. That's why hitting from behind is so dangerous. And while pushing and shoving along the boards might be common, what Erne did to Drouin was definitely not an everyday hockey play. It's the type of hit that kids learn in peewee not to throw.

Adam Erne played with fire and got burned. Usually dirty hockey plays don't result in anything more than a minor penalty - or they go unnoticed. But every now and again a dirty play is going to **** someone up. When it does, the player has to pay the price. In Erne's case, the price is the beginnings of a reputation as a reckless hitter, and his on-ice decisions will now be filtered through that lens. His choice is to either embrace that reputation or tighten up.

The only reason it got out, it is because it was Drouin, Canada's hope for a gold medal at the WJC.

He hits his teammate Darcy Ashley and that reputation isn't started.

And him being thrown out of a USA game doesn't become a thing.

Like I said, one incident that wasn't one in 4 junior years doesn't make him a dirty player.

 

[Roz]

The only reason it got out, it is because it was Drouin, Canada's hope for a gold medal at the WJC.

He hits his teammate Darcy Ashley and that reputation isn't started.

And him being thrown out of a USA game doesn't become a thing.

Like I said, one incident that wasn't one in 4 junior years doesn't make him a dirty player.

That's what I mean by playing with fire. Erne threw a flagrantly illegal hit on a star player/future teammate 3 weeks before the start of the WJC, concussed him, and then publicly accused him of diving. Every single one of those factors - the illegality of the hit, who he hit, who he is, the timing, the injury, the media comments, and the non-suspension - contributed to making this a big story. Only the discipline was out of Erne's hands. Everything else was the result of choices that he made. Now he's living with the consequences of those choices.

People will connect the Drouin incident to his NHL debut, and they connect those incidents to the incident in the Team USA exhibition game. He's gaining a reputation. Little things add up - especially when looked at under a magnifying glass. People won't care that they happened in different leagues, or that a punishment was unfair, or anything else: they'll just see the headline and then make a connection.

That's what happens when you play your game on the borders of what is and is not legal. Most of the time nothing bad will happen, but a single incident can change how people perceive you for the rest of your career. How he plays going forward will determine to what extent that reputation will stick. Is that fair? Maybe, maybe not. But them's the breaks.

 

[MikeyP]

That's what I mean by playing with fire. Erne threw a flagrantly illegal hit on a star player/future teammate 3 weeks before the start of the WJC, concussed him, and then publicly accused him of diving. Every single one of those factors - the illegality of the hit, who he hit, who he is, the timing, the injury, the media comments, and the non-suspension - contributed to making this a big story. Only the discipline was out of Erne's hands. Everything else was the result of choices that he made. Now he's living with the consequences of those choices.

People will connect the Drouin incident to his NHL debut, and they connect those incidents to the incident in the Team USA exhibition game. He's gaining a reputation. Little things add up - especially when looked at under a magnifying glass. People won't care that they happened in different leagues, or that a punishment was unfair, or anything else: they'll just see the headline and then make a connection.

That's what happens when you play your game on the borders of what is and is not legal. Most of the time nothing bad will happen, but a single incident can change how people perceive you for the rest of your career. How he plays going forward will determine to what extent that reputation will stick. Is that fair? Maybe, maybe not. But them's the breaks.

Well said

 

[DFC]

Drouin returned at Sunday's pre-WJC game. I didn't see the game, but Canada lost, and his coach's comments post-game weren't encouraging. "I thought he was average at best. He didn't play very good at all." -- Brent Sutter

 

[Tampa Bay Kiwi]

Drouin returned at Sunday's pre-WJC game. I didn't see the game, but Canada lost, and his coach's comments post-game weren't encouraging. "I thought he was average at best. He didn't play very good at all." -- Brent Sutter

Wow thats harsh for just a pre-tourney game.

Hope he steps it up

 

[DFC]

Wow thats harsh for just a pre-tourney game.

Hope he steps it up

His first game back. He was feeling things out. He acknowledged post-game that he felt like he didn't work hard enough, but I'm sure there were some butterfly and rust issues.

 

[DFC]

Drouin scores 2 vs. Swiss.

Something interesting: It looks like Drouin is a full time center now. He was shifted from left wing to center for this game, and in a post-game interview he said he prefers center now and can generate more speed from there.