Thank You Bloumeister for the link.
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No Suspension for Erik Cole according to the devils beat writer.
Here's some other confirmations.
TGfireandice Tom Gulitti
Hearing that there is no hearing planned by NHL Player Safety dept. for Erik Cole's hit on Adam Larsson last night.
TheProgramBTR Chris Wassel
From what I am hearing no punishment for Cole on Larsson hit.
Ledger_NJDevils Rich Chere
Nothing officially from the NHL yet but it appears Erik Cole will not face any added punishment for his hit to Adam Larsson's head.
Larsson put himself in a more vulnerable position right before contact was made.
The puck had just left his stick, so it's not wasn't late.
Cole tried to hit the chest, but when Larsson leaned over further, he hit the head.
I expected a few games from Shanaban, but I really didn't think it deserved a suspension (although under new NHL rules where you can't touch a player, I thought it should have been).
No Suspension for Erik Cole according to the devils beat writer.
Here's some other confirmations.
TGfireandice Tom Gulitti
Hearing that there is no hearing planned by NHL Player Safety dept. for Erik Cole's hit on Adam Larsson last night.
TheProgramBTR Chris Wassel
From what I am hearing no punishment for Cole on Larsson hit.
Ledger_NJDevils Rich Chere
Nothing officially from the NHL yet but it appears Erik Cole will not face any added punishment for his hit to Adam Larsson's head.
Good...he shouldn't be suspended for that hit. He didn't target Larsson's head, he was trying to lay a body check and Larsson's reaching ahead for the puck put him in a dangerous position.
If Cole would have skated by him and clipped Larsson in the head, then I'd say give him a 2 game suspension...but players still have the right to throw body checks and players still have to be responsible for their well-being and not put themselves into vulnerable positions.
If Malone would've been suspended like he should have, Cole would have received a suspension and deservedly so. But considering Shanny set a precedent with those types of hits where a player changes position at the last minute, and since the victim was a Hab no less, there can be no suspension for Cole. Otherwise the Habs would yell foul.
Thing about the hit, while I don't like it, is that (as Cunneyworth said), Cole was coming from in front of the net to the back of it to hit Larsson so he couldn't see that the head was ducked. Also, with that amount of momentum in such a tight space, there's not much he can do. I would understand a 1 game suspension, but again, it's just another example of how these hit just happen due to circumstance. Some are just awful and usually get punished (unless Bruin). Cole is lucky to get away with it BUT I also don't think there's anything he could have done. Knowing that you could be suspended doesn't prevent that hit. The logic behind facing duther discipline ignores that actual physics of the game and supposes that players can react to millisecond changes when they are tired or engaged in a play or when they are already going at full momentum.
I don't think cole did it on purpose but I don't get it. I guess I just assumed they dropped the ball with Malone hit and it wouldn't happen again. What's the exact criteria for headshots? I mean, i used to think targetting the head was suspension, then max got suspended for hitting it unintentionally, so i'm like 'okay any headshot' now cole hits him, mind you, not too bad, but still a head hit and zero. I'm glad cole isn't suspended and all, but I really don't get the rules.
No Suspension for Erik Cole according to the devils beat writer.
Here's some other confirmations.
TGfireandice Tom Gulitti
Hearing that there is no hearing planned by NHL Player Safety dept. for Erik Cole's hit on Adam Larsson last night.
TheProgramBTR Chris Wassel
From what I am hearing no punishment for Cole on Larsson hit.
Ledger_NJDevils Rich Chere
Nothing officially from the NHL yet but it appears Erik Cole will not face any added punishment for his hit to Adam Larsson's head.
That makes two of us. I really hope they clarify some **** this summer because this is getting stupid.
It will never happen. It's too much of a gray area. Shanahan made it worse, but even if he did his job, there's no way to police it correctly when it comes to incidental contact/player moving at the last second. The egregious ones are obvious, the subtle ones will never have a clearly defined outcome.
Also consider slashing. You ARE allowed to stick check. If your stick check breaks a players feeble composite, penalty. If you knock it out of his hands cuz he's not gripping it tightly (happened to Darche against Philly...don't think it should have been a penalty), it's a penalty. If you get into a swordfight and lift a players stick so that their stick hits you in the face...they get the penalty. Rules in hockey are always going to be incredibly subjective and not well defined on top of that. Even the puck over the glass rule, while I like it when it favours us, is stupid when it's clearly not an attempt to flip it into the crowd. It's a gimmick ultimately. At least that rule is black and white.
I don't even know anymore but I guess this is good news. Hopefully Larsson is okay, I'd hate for a future elite D to have his career hurt...especially by a Habs player.
the NHL announced that it will not have a hearing for Montreal's Erik Cole, who delivered a check to New Jersey's Adam Larsson Saturday night in which Larsson was struck in the head.
While announcing that Cole would not receive supplemental discipline Sunday, Shanahan said, "We reviewed this play extensively. The overriding factor in this two-minute minor penalty not receiving further supplemental discipline is the significant change of position to Larsson's head as he bends over and lunges for the puck just prior or simultaneous to the check by Erik Cole."
