Hunting the headhunters- Mike Peca will admit it: Early in his NHL career, when it came to hitting and concussions, he was the one who played hard and fast and wasn't overly worried if the opponent he'd just hammered in the head needed help getting off the ice.
Then it started happening to him — the head shots, concussions and all those lingering effects — and now he has a different view on what has become the primary safety issue among the NHL's more than 800 players.
"Once you receive a couple [of concussions], it kind of changes your perspective on what the rules should be in the game," the veteran Columbus Blue Jacket said. "In our game, a lot of stuff is reactionary, but there are a lot of hits where guys have plenty of time to make a decision … should I check the puck back or should I pulverize this guy regardless of the position he's in? And far too often, it's the latter."
While many in and around the game vigorously debate the merits of fighting after the death of senior hockey defenceman Don Sanderson, the majority of NHL players are concerned with how to reduce the number of head shots that have crumpled the likes of Patrice Bergeron, Simon Gagné and Andrei Kostitsyn, to name just a few.
I think one of the biggest issues in the NHL is a players lack of respecting for their opponents when they are in a vulnerable positions. The Jones hit on Bergeron last year concerns me, Jones could have let up in that situation instead of hammering his opponent into the boards. Jones got a 2 game suspension, Bergeron was out for the rest of the season.
I think the NHL league office should start hammering the players harder in the wallet and suspending the players that don't back off the head shots before they get way out of hand. There is also the old saying live by the sword and die by the sword eventually a dirty player gets what is coming to him. You just hope that guy doesn't ruin a couple of players careers on the way.
Some guys intentionally go for the head shot, but I think its bad karma," Vancouver Canucks forward Darcy Hordichuk said. "You know, what goes around comes around. I try not to hit anybody when they're in a vulnerable position, and I'd hope that guys respect that with me if I'm ever in a vulnerable situation."
"There's no place for it," Eric Nystrom of the Calgary Flames added. "You've got to put yourself in the other guy's position."
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