Interesting quote by Matt Cooke of the Pittsburgh Penguins but he is right if he had kneed Alex Ovechkin or one of the Capitals skilled players Cooke would be looking at a 1-3 game suspension from the league office. I think there is a double standard when it comes to league discipline of its players. I predict nothing will be done to Ovechkin because he is a star player and he is held to a different standard than a goon or third line role player. Ovechkin is also a big fan draw for the NHL and Versus.
PITTSBURGH -- Matt Cooke knows what the verdict would be if it were him on the stand today facing what passes for NHL justice.
"If I did what he did, I wouldn't be on the ice," the Penguins forward said last night in the bittersweet aftermath of a critical 5-3 win over the Washington Capitals.
Matt Cooke is not Alex Ovechkin, however, which is the challenge NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell faces in making a ruling prior to tonight's Game 5 of the riveting best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal that is now tied at 2-2.
Ovechkin's knee-on-knee hit on Sergei Gonchar in the first period had the star defenceman writhing on the Mellon Arena ice and potentially gone for the remainder of the Penguins' playoff run.
And it had the Pens seething and fiercely seeking justice despite having just put the series back on equal terms.
"He goes out there to hurt players," Pens defenceman Brooks Orpik said of the flamboyant Russian star. "That's three games in a row against us. Just watch the way the guy hits. He leaves his feet and takes countless strides at guys. There's a line you can't cross and he does it.
"We're not in charge of suspending guys, but it looks pretty obvious to us."
In what was an all-around wasted night for Ovechkin, who was held to just two shots on net and one assist, what the league decides today may carry as much weight on how the remainder of the series plays out.
Tonight's contest, as with all Game 5s, has massive implications for the series, so too then does the manner in which the NHL handles it.
Campbell must decide if, as the Caps claim, Ovechkin led with his shoulder and then couldn't move quick enough to avoid contact. And depending on the level of guilt, there is a matter of weighing on a team's superstar being taken down by another.
Matt Cooke should be suspended for being Matt Cooke. He really should keep his mouth shut, because he's done a lot of stuff a shit ton more hacky and significant than this hit. If Ovechkin had deliberately stuck his knee out, then yes, suspend him. He made no effort to get out of the way, but I don't think it is suspendable. I may actually watch this game, though, just to see who the Penguins send out to take out Ovie. I have a funny feeling we may end up with someone getting suspended for retaliation on a hit that didn't get the original suspension, and then the Penguins can cry all the way to the golf course while everyone else continues to ignore them.
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