The NHL has spoken, they have made an example out of Raffi Torres, they have thrown the book at him. The NHL has also set a precedence, the question is, will the NHL be consistent in their ruling?. While I think that Torres deserved at least a 5-10 suspension this suspension is almost to the point of being excessive. My first question is, would the NHL give the same suspension for a star player? I am going to say not.
NEW YORK -- Following are statements from National Hockey League Senior Vice President of Player Safety and Hockey Operations Brendan Shanahan in announcing the 25-game suspension assessed to Phoenix Coyotes forward Raffi Torres:
"This is a violation of three NHL rules – interference, charging and illegal check to the head."
"In addition to the fact that three separate NHL rules were violated with this one hit, two other factors were critical in determining the appropriate length of suspension:
"First, this violent and dangerous hit caused a severe injury.
"Second, Torres not only is a repeat offender as defined by the CBA, his extensive Supplemental Discipline history consists mainly of acts very similar to this one – including two this season."
"Despite knowing that Hossa no longer has the puck, Torres decides to finish his check past the amount of time when Hossa is eligible to be bodychecked. That is a violation of the Interference rule."
"While we acknowledge the circumstances of certain hits may cause a player's skates to come off the ice, on this hit, Torres launches himself into the air before making contact. This is a violation of the Charging rule."
"The position of Hossa's head does not change just prior to or simultaneous with this hit. The onus, therefore, is on Torres not to make it the principal point of contact. By leaping, Torres makes Hossa's head the principal point of contact. That is a violation of the Illegal Check to the Head rule."
