Matt Cooke Suspension Thread: Suspended 7 Games [Mod Warning Post #1]

[spreadking]

meh I'm over it, I just want a W tomorrow

 

[MK9]

To me it looks like he was going for a huge body check and made a bad decision when things went south.

Yep. Looked like missed & he just decided to continue to try and make the hit at all costs. Bit him in the rear.

 

[rynryn]

its suspendable in the same way an inadvertent stick to the head is still high-sticking. you have to be in control when something you're doing has a high probability of injuring someone. that about sums it up.

 

[Avder]

The mainboard thread really isnt worth reading or posting in.

 

[TZM]

Tough loss for 7 games. He's so sound defensively and can hold on to the puck well.

 

[Finnsane]

Well, he will be back just in time for Conference finals

 

[Engebretson]

I swear, some non-Wild fans weren't going to be happy if the punishment was anything less than death by 17th century guillotine. About all I have to say about that.

I completely agree that Cooke made a stupid decision and should be punished for putting himself in that kind of situation, but the NHL can't seriously be basing punishments on injury, injury length or extent of injury. So the NHL is totally fine with players attempting the same thing as Bryan Bickell did only a few days ago? Cooke gets punished because of his history and that fact that Barrie was injured, but Bickell's kneeing incident flys totally under the radar because Sobotka was (thankfully) uninjured and Bickell hasn't been suspended before? Let's not kid ourselves and pretend these are apples and oranges scenarios either. Bickell receives no punishment for doing almost exactly the same thing as Cooke where he realized his was going to hit nothing but air and threw out a knee at the last minute to at least hit something.

At the same time, Cooke probably should have gotten a call from the league office about his knee on Nischuskin against Dallas awhile back. Even if they didn't plan on punishing him, you let it be known that he will be called and warned about that type of dangerous hit. Maybe they did call him about it and they never made it public, but making it public sends a message in its own right.

Like I said, I am not trying to justify anything that Cooke did, because I feel he made a stupid decision, should be punished for it, and the suspension is about right. The NHL DOPS just needs to make a uniform effort to take ALL dangerous hits out of the game, instead of just punishing or discussing the ones that cause injury.

 

[Jarick]

Two comments.

1. He fully deserved seven games, as should anyone who sticks their knee out to injure an opposing player. I would much rather have Bickell get 5+ games along with Cooke than Cooke get off the hook just like Bickell did. The DOPS is a complete joke because they punish to the injury, not the intent. I also wish they would punish head shots with 7-10 game suspensions, if not longer.

2. The narrative that the Denver media is pushing, regarding Cooke's reform being a media show, is BS. He has obviously changed his game overall, taking much fewer penalties and letting up on hits frequently. One stupid, terrible, dirty hit doesn't completely erase three good years. I realize that's not a sexy storyline, but that's why I don't pay attention to almost any media.

 

[Jarick]

I swear, some non-Wild fans weren't going to be happy if the punishment was anything less than death by 17th century guillotine. About all I have to say about that.

The main boards are full of people about whom I can't speak without getting an infraction. We'll leave it at that.

...the NHL can't seriously be basing punishments on injury, injury length or extent of injury

At the same time, Cooke probably should have gotten a call from the league office about his knee on Nischuskin against Dallas awhile back.

Completely agree on both counts. I saw that knee vs Dallas and it was surprising because Cooke played so clean up to that point. If the league was proactive about these things, we wouldn't have so many dirty hits.

 

[Lapa]

“First and foremost, I want to say that I’m disappointed and sorry that Tyson Barrie can’t play for the Colorado Avalanche tonight. I wish that he could. Unfortunately, it was not my intent to collide with him knee-on-knee. It was my intent to finish my check. Playoffs are a hard and physical time and it’s my job to be physical. I’ve led my team in hits in all three games and it’s an intense time. I’ve led my team this year in hits and in this series."

“Since March 20, 2011 (the elbow to Ryan McDonagh that resulted in a 17-game suspension), I’ve been a changed player. I’ve approached the game differently, I think differently about the game. That stats that I’ve collected over those three seasons prove that I’m a changed player and the plays that I make and the plays that I don’t make prove to that point as well. At the end of the day, this situation was not my intent.”

-Matt Cooke

 

[BigT2002]

-Matt Cooke

Won't matter. People will hate him until they are on their favorite team and doing some of the things he did.

 

[Lapa]

Won't matter. People will hate him until they are on their favorite team and doing some of the things he did.

Of course they will, and I don't blame them. If Matt Cooke played for the Avs and he did that to one of our guys, I would probably feel the same. That said, I still like Cooke as a player - he has proven that he's a good 3rd liner, great PKer with decent puck skills.

I believe what he did was dirty, but at the same time, I think it was just a hit gone wrong. I don't believe for a second that Cooke intended to do this. Especially with his history, it would be very dumb to try to injure a player.

Seven games is probably fair considering his past. I just hope this incident doesn't ruin a great series. Hope we see no more of this kind of hits.

 

[ProfessorMcFatty]

7 games seems fair, but the inconsistency really bothers me. I don't have any fondness for Cooke, or much preference in the outcome of most of the other team's series.

But I hate seeing the random punishments get doled out. It cheapens the game when players get away with an obvious infraction.

When Lucic pitchforked a guy in the balls, I was at a loss for words. When he got a $5k fine and NO suspension, I had lots of choice words.

Fines should reflect a % of player salary, because $5k means nothing to a guy making $6 million a year. And suspensions should be uniform, because no star player is going to risk a stupid play like that in the playoffs, if he knows he's gone for 7 games.

 

[MuckOG]

It was definitely a dirty hit, but I don't believe for a second that Cooke intended to hurt Barrie. He's still responsible, though, and the suspension is deserving.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

7 games seems fair, but the inconsistency really bothers me. I don't have any fondness for Cooke, or much preference in the outcome of most of the other team's series.

But I hate seeing the random punishments get doled out. It cheapens the game when players get away with an obvious infraction.

When Lucic pitchforked a guy in the balls, I was at a loss for words. When he got a $5k fine and NO suspension, I had lots of choice words.

Fines should reflect a % of player salary, because $5k means nothing to a guy making $6 million a year. And suspensions should be uniform, because no star player is going to risk a stupid play like that in the playoffs, if he knows he's gone for 7 games.

Yep. Until they are systematic, and tied to anything resembling a standard, they are always going to be controversial.

They need to take the name out of it, and set up some sort of a system.

1st degree (most severe, 10+ games)
2nd degree (5ish games)
3rd degree (1-2 games)

Use multipliers for repeat offenders; a 2nd degree offender repeats his action, multiply his penalty be whatever number is decided on. Same with 1st and 3rd.

As long as players are aware of the system, they would have no excuses.

 

[Marlowe Syn]

I agree with MuckOG.
I believe that Cooke is always going to be on thin ice with his conduct. He was vilified for injuring Karlsson in what to me looked like an extremely unfortunate accident. His knee on knee was dirty, and he got the suspension he deserves. It sucks that we are going to lose him for the rest of the series. I also see how it looks like Colorado is going to lose Barrie for arguably the rest of the playoff. It was a crappy situation and Cooke is responsible. He did the crime.

I can't worry about what the Cooke haters have to say about him. He could win Lady Byng and Masterton trophies every year for the rest of his career and the general opinion about will never change. He's branded and nothing will change that. It was a dirty play, but I don't think he is a dirty player anymore. I say that, and even though he is a Wild, he is still far from a favorite player of mine.

 

[Biggs111]

I suppose it was just a matter of time with Cooke - and it will be again… He plays an aggressive game - and with his past there is zero room for slipping up - whether at fault or not…

But, please nobody, for the millionth time, think that this is condoned - it has everything to do with consistency...

Lets have a great game tonight Avs… A hard hitting - in your face style game… May the best team win…

go wild

 

[Jarick]

It was definitely a dirty hit, but I don't believe for a second that Cooke intended to hurt Barrie. He's still responsible, though, and the suspension is deserving.

That's an interesting distinction. What you are saying is that Cooke knowingly laid a reckless, illegal hit...but he didn't intend to hurt the opposing player. I think you could be on to something.

In that situation, Cooke knows what he is doing is wrong, but he doesn't consider the consequences while doing it.

 

[thestonedkoala]

As all of you know, I wasn't and still not happy with the Cooke signing but I don't believe for a second it was an intentional hit. It was a dirty hit but I think it was more of a reckless dirty then anything. Cooke was playing reckless and it cost Barrie the playoffs. It's unfortunate but we've seen players (like Erik Johnson) throw reckless hits out there.

 

[Northland Wild Man]

Free Matt Cooke!

 

[TwiztedHeat]

We only won tonight because Barrie was out! FREE MATT COOKE!

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

It was nice for the Avs to surrender the high ground, with Hejda's slew foot and Stastny's crosscheck. Whether it was 'karma' or not, Colorado was the dirtier team tonight by a mile.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

It was nice for the Avs to surrender the high ground, with Hejda's slew foot and Stastny's crosscheck. Whether it was 'karma' or not, Colorado was the dirtier team tonight by a mile.

McLeod was clearly looking to start something as well.

 

[Northland Wild Man]

Somebody has to upload the post game chant.

 

[ThatGuy22]

That's an interesting distinction. What you are saying is that Cooke knowingly laid a reckless, illegal hit...but he didn't intend to hurt the opposing player. I think you could be on to something.

In that situation, Cooke knows what he is doing is wrong, but he doesn't consider the consequences while doing it.

I think HF GMs struggle to realize how little time players are reacting under.

From the time Barrie starts to cut, to when Cooke hits him in the knee is like half a second. Cooke is going into lay a big body check, Barrie does a quick cut throwing off the aim. Cooke had two choices and a half a second to make it 1)Bail on the check and start backchecking 2) Try cutting/lunging to keep with Barrie and finish the check.

In the split second, he made the wrong choice and laid a reckless hit. But given Cooke's history, he know's he's got to be cleaner than the average hockey player. We've seen him bail on hits all year that would get him suspended. This time he made the wrong choice, he deserves to sit to reinforce that he can't make those hits.

Any other player on our roster, and thats likely not even looked at. Maybe a 2 gamer due to the injury. It is what it is, and thats what you get with Cooke. He's got to be cleaner than the average hockey player.