McLeod speaks

When I read this article this morning it made my blood boil. I have to give props for Fighting Sioux beat writer Brad E. Schlossman for writing this story and getting it out in the open for the public to read. It is also time for the WCHA to update its rules and have a standard that is more acceptable. The NHL makes swift and just decision that don't make five days to make. This is unacceptable. The league office appears that it doesn’t want to make the hard decisions. Maybe it is time the WCHA hires someone who will make just and fair decisions that are consistent.

To take a page from Redwing_77’s book; it is time for Bruce McLeod and Greg Shepherd to be relieved of their duties at the WCHA league office. When his contract is up for renewal it's time to send him a pink slip and put a new leadership in their place.


Is McLeod kidding? The league decided to give a player a private reprimand for his bush league and gutless attack on another player and received nothing else, after the Gophers coach Don Lucia failed to suspend Brian “the Hack” Schack. If I was George Gwozdecky I would be very unhappy with the league office right now. One coach manned up while the other one made excuses for bad behavior. My respect for Gwoz has gone up three fold.

If the league office is not going to suspend a player for such a blatant bush league attack, at least give that player a harsher public rebuke. Nothing! The sound of silence was deafening. Last season Kyle Radke got an extra game disqualification for his two fight game against the Denver Pioneers last season. If you watched the game between Minnesota and Mankato you will see that Schack was actually punching two different Gopher players with his helmet and gloves on during the same game that he was given a game disqualification in.

Like one fellow Sioux fans from New York said, “They're just gearing up to really stick it to the Sioux when ANYTHING out of the ordinary happens....Hak better have his boys on a short lease for the rest of the year, or suspensions will come fast and furious with the Sioux's reputation.” Just for the record WCHA head of officials Greg Shepherd will be at both games this weekend. Gee I wonder what the potential response would be if there is an incident this weekend? I would be willing to bet that it will be swift, harsh and not some bush league private reprimand.

I wonder what the leagues response would have been if the offending player had been wearing green and white during the Brian Schack incident? I would be willing to bet that the response would not be the kids gloves treatment Don Luica’s hack received.

Men's hockey: WCHA commish talks suspensions
Brad Elliott --- Schlossman Grand Forks Herald
Western Collegiate Hockey Association commissioner Bruce McLeod has the executive power to issue immediate suspensions, but he said this week he would prefer to follow guidelines in the league handbook.

Those guidelines — seen as a negotiation — are starting to come under fire after the league has had to deal with a misconduct issue for the third week in a row.

Denver defenseman Patrick Mullen was suspended Thursday for one game because of a slash at the end of last Saturday’s game on Minnesota-Duluth forward Mike Connolly.
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Two weeks ago, McLeod said the league examined Minnesota defenseman Brian Schack’s attack on MSU-Mankato’s Channing Boe. With Boe facing the ice and without a helmet, Schack punched him during a scrum. Boe suffered a broken bone in his leg and is likely out for the season.

Schack was issued a private reprimand but was given no additional suspension (he sat out one game because of a game disqualification penalty).
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“Obviously, we’re concerned about these incidents,” McLeod said. “I think we had seven game disqualifications last weekend for different reasons. I don’t think it’s ever happened like that. So there’s definitely a concern.

“But I have to be darn careful. In Patrick Mullen’s incident, just because he was the last one, doesn’t mean he should take the cumulative effect of all of the incidents. I try real hard to take each decision on its own.”