Player Discussion Brad Marchand VI‎

[TheBigBadB]

Prust admitted doing it on purpose and got a fine

This is wrong anyway you slice it.

DoPS should have said that we have never suspended anyone for this infraction and will not begin now. Marchand will be fined XXXX. However, giving the history of his infraction beginning next season we will have a new rule on spearing and discipline which could result in suspended games.

 

[ReggieMoto]

NHL suspends Brad Marchand, explains why Sidney Crosby wasn’t

Written by Greg Wyshynski of Puck Daddy
We all knew [a suspension] was going to happen. The mystery was whether or not the NHL would do anything in its suspension video to address the giant penguin in the room: The Sidney Crosby crotch-shot on Ryan O’Reilly of the Buffalo Sabres, which not only wasn’t a Department of Player Safety issue but wasn’t penalized during the game.

To summarize, although it’s left unsaid: Sidney Crosby’s spear happens all the time and doesn’t rise to a suspension; Sidney Crosby’s spear wasn’t this harsh; and Sidney Crosby hasn’t been fined or suspended seven times and five times for targeting the lower extremities.

 

[Greek_physique]

what a joke......at least he'll be fresh for the playoffs.

 

[ODAAT]

Prust admitted doing it on purpose and got a fine

This is wrong anyway you slice it.

DoPS should have said that we have never suspended anyone for this infraction and will not begin now. Marchand will be fined XXXX. However, giving the history of his infraction beginning next season we will have a new rule on spearing and discipline which could result in suspended games.

I don`t recall him admitting anything other than saying it was the best 5 grand he`s ever spent

Not defending Prust but I think he was previously suspended only 1 time

Again, the playing field will never be level but Marchand knows that and did something foolish knowing he probably escaped pretty good earlier this season having to pay 10 grand for his actions

My guess, if a Bruin had of had this happen to him, even by a guy who`s never sniffed a suspension, most would be calling for a minimum of 2, probably asking more for 5 games

 

[chizzler]

Who cares. Get ready for the playoffs.

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

fine...stupid thing for him to do but they had better give the next player who does this more than a $5k fine. That is what pisses me off.

Plus (while i am ranting anyway) brad gets abused every game and no calls. If the shoe were on the other foot he would be in the box more often.

He is no angel but i love him on the b's. Also he doesn't misbehave as much as he used to.

I do agree he should not have done the spear but disagree that he is always treated more harshly than others (even repeat offenders)

100%.

 

[SerenityRick]

NHL suspends Brad Marchand, explains why Sidney Crosby wasn’t

Kind of hard for Crosby to get suspended 6 times like Marchand when he's constantly and consistently forgiven for his dirty plays simply because he's the face of the league.

I do not like that logic from him at all.

 

[jgatie]

NHL suspends Brad Marchand, explains why Sidney Crosby wasn’t

Written by Greg Wyshynski of Puck Daddy
We all knew [a suspension] was going to happen. The mystery was whether or not the NHL would do anything in its suspension video to address the giant penguin in the room: The Sidney Crosby crotch-shot on Ryan O’Reilly of the Buffalo Sabres, which not only wasn’t a Department of Player Safety issue but wasn’t penalized during the game.

To summarize, although it’s left unsaid: Sidney Crosby is Sidney Crosby.

There, fixed it.

 

[Mainehockey33]

Kind of hard for Crosby to get suspended 6 times like Marchand when he's constantly and consistently forgiven for his dirty plays simply because he's the face of the league.

I do not like that logic from him at all.

Exactly. The NHLs solution is just to never suspend stars so they never get a history of suspensions.

 

[HuskyBruinPride]

I have a huge issue with this suspension. It was a dirty move but how do you justify suspending Marchand for 2 games when the precedent has long been just a fine on a nut shot? Hell Crosby got away with it himself not too long ago, no suspension of course. If you wanna change how you handle nut shots, fine, but don't change the punishment at the very end of the season. Wait until the next season and then starting calling things consistently.

 

[GoBs]

Seems pretty simple to me. Stop doing stupid crap and you won't have to worry about getting major penalties or suspensions.

If it was only that simple

 

[Braunbaer]

2 games is pretty steep especially since Marshy was looking at 40 goal season. I wonder if he had bonus money lost because he will not reach 40 goals?

He's lucky he doesn't miss any playoff games.
And I hope he did lose bonus money for his ******** "play". He's just a big ******* on the ice and he should thank the PK they killed those 5 minutes.

 

[BruinLVGA]

Lolllll... Such a sleazy move by DoPS. I thought it was going to happen because Marchand is such an easy scapegoat (to be the first ever to be suspended for a spear to the nuts, that is). But such a greasy move, man.
If DoPS had even a shred of dignity, they should have followed the line they followed in every case (= no suspension) till now, especially considering Dotchin just happily continued playing, and sent out a memo to all teams that starting next season they would crack down on spears to the jewels.
Double standards never look good.

That said, I am OK with Marchand resting till the playoffs.

 

[BruinLVGA]

Recap of the situation from Gavin Lee. Quote below sums up DOPS position. He also addresses issues discussed here with no precedent for suspensions with spears, Crosby situation and Marchand's rap sheet. Full article in the attached link.

"What causes this play to rise to the level of supplemental discipline is the intent, the amount of force used, and Marchand’s substantial history of attacking the lower body of opponents. This is not incidental or inadvertent contact. This is not light contact that, while illegal, does not rise to the level of supplemental discipline."

https://www.prohockeyrumors.com/2017/04/marchand-suspended-spearing.html

The big question about the bolded part is that if they were able to maintain a straight face when saying this or if they were giggling uncontrollably. I think that it is the latter.

 

[BMC]

he got what he deserved, never mind the inconsistency from the league, he`s got a history, he knows it and this play was just plain stupid

Amen.

 

[ashnathan]

Suspended for poor history, not the nut tap.

 

[PlayMakers]

Marchand got what he deserved.

That said, the NHL has now opened a can of worms where they have to try to guess at the "amount of force used" on every nut shot from here on out.

 

[BruinLVGA]

NHL suspends Brad Marchand, explains why Sidney Crosby wasn’t

In the comments to that article, there was an absolute pearl: "You should never attack the lower body. You should approach it more like you are trying to lick the nectar off the wings of a hummingbird."

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

What a clown show if they are trying to justify the suspension as though Marchand is a serial lower body targeter. That is a really weak justification. Now we know the embellishment worked.

What on earth.

 

[jgatie]

How do you eliminate concussions and head shots that are ruining careers? Target the guy who aims below the belt.

Never change DoPS. Never change.

 

[BruinLVGA]

What a clown show if they are trying to justify the suspension as though Marchand is a serial lower body targeter. That is a really weak justification. Now we know the embellishment worked.

What on earth.

It IS a (majorly) weak justification indeed. But the cherry on top of the icing is when they estimate the force of the spear. Does anyone see Marchand's spear as having this incredible major amount of force used, to the point of being significantly stronger than other spears? What a joke.

 

[ashnathan]

In the comments to that article, there was an absolute pearl: "You should never attack the lower body. You should approach it more like you are trying to lick the nectar off the wings of a hummingbird."

thanks for ruining my morning coffee and making me wear it day made

 

[qc]

I have no problem whatsoever with the ruling, and I'm far from a Marchand hater.

Don't get me wrong, the Dept. of Player Safety is a joke most of the time, but I personally feel that these types of spears should be punished more severely. Hopefully this becomes the status quo with similar incidents in the future, though I certainly won't hold my breath.

He's just lucky his teammates bailed him out the other night. Imagine if we didn't make the playoffs on account of this, even though we wouldn't even be in the running without his elite play all season long... I'm glad we didn't have to go down that road.

I just hope he smartens up, gets some rest and comes out strong in the postseason.

 

[sarge88]

Fine...Stupid thing for him to do but they had better give the next player who does this more than a $5k fine. That is what pisses me off.

Plus (while I am ranting anyway) Brad gets abused every game and NO CALLS. If the shoe were on the other foot he would be in the box more often.

He is no angel but I LOVE him on the b's. Also he doesn't misbehave as much as he used to.

I do agree he should not have done the spear but disagree that he is ALWAYS treated more harshly than others (EVEN repeat offenders)

Exactly!

This was a just sentence, but it should be the same for everyone going forward....which we all know it won't be.

This is why the NHL administration is such a joke.

 

[sarge88]

just like Tuukka right everybody




He deserves what he got. It's what I expected. Sure nobody has been suspended for that before but he's already had plenty of incidents. It doesn't help that he poked him afterwards either. I'm glad he's in for the playoffs- I thought they might give him 3 to send a message

I'm fine with him being a ******** every now and again. I would have preferred it not to happen in such a big spot. From what I understand that lightning defenseman has a little bit of a rep in the AHL so it wouldn't surprise me if he did something to make brad retaliate the way he did. It Doesn't excuse the act, just explains why it may have happened

Oh well, we won and he's forgiven. He's carried the team, I can't stay mad at him

Problem with the bolded is that many of his "incidents" weren't considered incidents for other players.

At the very least, 50% of his suspensions have been reaches by the league, with either no precedent or no follow through when other players did the same thing.