Peter Gegick on how a meaningless February game turned into the pre-Valentine's Day Massacre.
Mario Lemieux threatening to leave the game of hockey? Multiple journalists saying that a team deserved to have two of its players assaulted, due to someone who wasn't even involved in the game? The longest suspension goes to a guy who defended his own teammate?
For those who don't know, the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins didn't so much play a hockey game as harken back to the 70's and 80's, when line brawls were rampant, players like Wendel Clark were just as revered for their fists as their goal-scoring ability and people went into the stands to fight fans.
The weirder part? The Islanders were winning 6-0 when the antics started. Normally, that's when the other team decides to start extracting a pound of flesh for "running up the score." Instead, the Islanders decided it was a good time to practice skills that don't always come into play, like suckerpunching, elbowing and fighting the other team's goalie.
So what's to be said about this? Well, let's start here.
What the Islanders did was InexcusableFull disclosure here. I've grown up around hockey. My dad played and coached for a number of years(ok, 35ish) and my brother still plays.
So when I say that none of us have ever seen anything quite like the game on the Island, remind yourself that these are people.
The closest comparison I could draw to this game would be the Bertuzzi-Moore incident...only if it included the Brian Propp/Chris Chelios hit and the . It was that out of control.
Granted, something's always up when the Islanders-who were so offensively inept that they had an 11-game stretch where they never scored more than two goals in a game-score four goals in the first period. But after seeing that Brent Johnson was in the net, the same Brent Johnson who had knocked out Islanders goaltender Rick Dipietro for four-to-six weeks with a left hook from Altoona, it probably lit a fire under the team.
The same could be said of the first fights of the game. Neither was really spectacular, but they were solid fights, with one, Haley vs. Adams, showing how dangerous Michael Haley could be if he could format some form of a game around his fighting ability. Both got the crowd into the game, and it was 4-0 before anyone blinked.
Then, after another two goals chased Johnson, the fireworks started.
In the middle of the second period, Matt Martin, a resident tough guy for the team, decided it would be a good idea to fight Max Talbot for his hit on Blake Comeau. With the score at 6-0, neither man had anything to lose. And, had he challenged him correctly,(yes, there is a way to challenge someone) the two could have settled their differences and it would have ended there.
Instead, Martin decided for a different route. He didn't say anything to Talbot, but merely dropped his gloves, grabbed him by the jersey and attempted to dislodge his head from his shoulders with his right fist.
Mercifully, before Martin could do any real damage, Talbot dropped like a fish. Martin never did actually connect with a punch, and a line brawl erupted, resulting in multiple ejections.
There would be many more before this one was done.
So, with the score now pushed to 8-2 and the return of Brent Johnson to the Penguins net, the game seemed to be rolling along in the third period. As a puck skittered along the board, Penguins forward Eric Tangradi rushed toward the corner to get it.
He never saw Trevor Gillies, a 6-foot 3 227 pound ball of muscle that makes his living with his fists. But on this play, Gillies didn't need his fist.
He just needed his elbow.
Flying toward Tangradi along the boards, Gilies launched his elbow into the chin of Tangradi, jamming him along the boards. But Gillies wasn't finished just yet.
No, as Tangradi grabbed his head and dropped to the ice, Gillies dropped his gloves and started raining down blows on Tangradi's head. He only got in a few before a scrum broke out, with every player finding a partner to fight. Thankfully for Tangradi, Craig Adams found Gillies before he could do any more damage.
Now, into this fracas, insert Michael Haley.
Haley, up to this point, had been quiet since his first fight. But, seizing the opportunity, he decided to try to fight Talbot for the Comeau hit. After winning that bout handily and being separated from Talbot, (Talbot isn't much of a fighter) Haley decided to go after a different target. Someone else who was willing to go.
Someone who also wears more padding than anyone else on the ice.
Now, it's Michael Haley vs. Brent Johnson, with a seasoned AHL fighter who's already won two bouts tonight facing a player who's heading into his second bout. Just watching the scene unfold, everyone can tell that Haley is going to get there before
Johnson can get rid of all of his equipment. Frankly, it looks like Haley is going to pummel him.
Then, Bob Errey had a call that will probably get him in with the crew at Versus.
"Godard's off the bench! Godard's off the Bench!"
Thankfully, Eric Godard, moving faster than he's ever moved in his NHL career, sprints toward Haley and wraps him up. Then, with Johnson's help, he begins to pound on Haley's head until the linesman dive in.
Now, cue the camera showing the door to the Islanders' dressing room, where Gillies stands. He's rocking in the doorway, fire in his eyes, yelling insults at Tangradi. Thankfully, he never leaves the runway, and Tangradi, with the help of veteran NHL trainer Chris Stewart, was escorted off of the ice.
After that, the refs finally decided to get control of the game, tossing every player in sight for even the most minor of infractions. Outside of a bizzare incident in which Zenon Konopka may or may not have sneaked off of the bench to try to fight Talbot, the game ended without incident.
There were 16 total players, not including goalies, left in the game when it ended.
The Cooke Theory Doesn't Fly:
After the game, Larry Brooks, the hockey writer for the New York Post responded to the game with the following tweet.
"That being said, there's no sympathy for the Penguins, the organization that enables serial predator Matt Cooke."
The theory continued into the weekend, with members of the media speaking out against Mario Lemieux's comments on the game. In a statement released from the owner, Lemieux openly questioned his role in the game after the devolution on Long Island. Chief among these was Scott Burnside, a ESPN hockey analyst, who referred to Lemieux as a "delicate flower" and wondered why he said nothing during the Marc Savard elbow, a blow that may have sent the fringe Hall-of-Famer into a tailspin that he may never recover from.
Now, this section will not be an attempt to defend Matt Cooke. What he's done in many instances, including the dangerous hit on Fedor Tyutin, is plain ugly. There's one key point that everyone misses though.
It had nothing to do with Cooke. At all.
Cooke may as well have been in Tahiti during the Islanders game.
(Though, if I can take a second, I would have paid money for either A) a camera to be placed on Cooke watching the game unfold, or B) Matt Cooke charging out of the locker room to "Raise a Little Hell" as an excited Errey starts yelling, "Dear God, that's Matt Cooke's music!" The worst part about this sequence? It would have totally fit in with the theme of the game.)
But it does raise an interesting point about Mr. Cooke. He has, unfortunately, become the most recent player to contract "Bertuzzi Syndrome."
Bertuzzi Syndrome is when a player becomes the villian for every action he's ever had...even though only one incident really sticks out in their minds.
It's called the Bertuzzi syndrome because despite being one of the, if not the most dominant power forward from 2001 to 2004, all anyone remembers Bertuzzi for is the Steve Moore incident. There's no real talk of the West Coast Express, no thoughts about the fact that he beat Mario Lemieux(that Mario) in scoring in 2002-2003. There will never be talk about how he was what Trevor Linden could have been on the wing, if it wasn't for an unfortunate knee injury that changed the course of his career
All anyone remembers is that punch and Bertuzzi driving Moore straight into the ice.
Cooke? Like it or not, he's always going to be remembered for that Savard hit. He won't be remembered as a mind-numbingly effective 3rd liner or the guy who spearheaded the physical play against Detroit during the Stanley Cup Finals. And he sure as hell won't be remembered for the two improbable goals during a Game 7 in Vancouver that made him thisclose to being The Man in that city.
All that's going to be remembered is that elbow, driving straight at Savard's head as he cuts across the ice.
Is it wrong? Yes. Cooke made a mistake, and it cost both players dearly. Every time he makes another borderline hit, like the one on Fedor Tyutin, he's going to be crucified in the media. Look no further than Jeremy Roenick and Ken Daneyko, who, being honest, were no saints themselves.
But, that's why people respect their opinions. These guys were out there, facing guys like Cooke on a night in/night out basis. Heck, Daneyko played with Slava Fetisov, who might have been the cheapest player in NHL history. (Strike that, it has to be some random player from the 20's, doesn't it?) Both have every right to criticize Cooke.
In fact, every commentator and reporter doesn't just have a right to do this...it's an obligation. Players like Cooke are dangerous and should be called out when they cross the line.
It's just too bad that when a real issue happens, the commentators and reporters are almost nowhere to be found.
The League Got It Wrong:
I actually like Colin Campbell. I think he's done a great job of handing out suspensions(the Savard incident/Alex Burrows mess nonwithstanding) and assessing the proper punishment for thug-like on the ice behavior. Heck, even when he was accused of bias a few months back, I defended him, figuring that if he really wanted to cheat, he could at least ensure that his son wouldn't be looking at his first playoff trip this season.
Generally, Campbell and the league get it right.
So when I found out what the actual suspension were, I was stunned. 13 total games to the Islanders and a 100,000 fine? That's it? Eric Godard, the only player on the Penguins who was suspended, got an automatic 10 for leaving the bench.
Trevor Gillies received 9 games.
Matt Martin received 4 games.
Which, if I'm calculating this right, means that it's better for an NHL player to take a running elbow at another players head before pummeling said head, as long as they don't leave the bench during a fight.
Um...what?
Doesn't common sense factor in here somewhere? In what situation is leaving the bench worse than an intent to injure penalty? Heck, in what situation is leaving the bench almost equivalent to not one, but two separate intent-to-injure scenarios?
Now, playing the role of Colin Campbell, here's what it should have looked like.
Godard-10 games. That was coming. It's in the rule book, Nothing you can really do about it now. At least the call will live on in infamy.
For arguments sake, let's throw in a two-game suspension for Dan Bylsma. After all, it's his guy who left the bench.
(Side Note: It was the right play for Godard. He should not, under any circumstances, watch his goalie get pummeled by a noted AHL fighter. Ever. There's a reason the guy had almost no regret about what he did.)
The organization should also get some type of fine...so something in the $40,000 range should do it.
Trevor Gillies-35 games.
5 games for taunting an injured opponent. If James Wisniewski can get two games for mimicking fellatio toward Sean Avery, then Gillies deserves at least five games for taunting an injured player.
10 games for the shot to Tangradi's head. If Tom Kostopolous got six games for this, then Gillies deserves more than that, since his is not only from behind, but could also work as a charging penalty.
10 games for attempting to engage in a fight with an injured player. Imagine if Graves had attempted to start punching Lemieux in the face after slashing him in the '92 playoffs. There's simply no excuse for a player to attack another player if the opponent for
10 games for an attempt to injure. Because when you try to fight a guy after you elbowed him in the jaw, isn't there a good chance you meant to hurt him?
Matt Martin-5 games
The best news for Martin? His sucker punch came nowhere near Talbot's head. And yes, this is only one game longer than the NHL's four-game suspension, but, as was stated earlier, the NHL usually gets it right.
Michael Haley-5 games
He gets a game for his three fighting majors, per NHL rules. He then also gets another four for leaving one fight to go after the goalie. Shouldn't there be some kind of suspension for this?
Zenon Konopka-0 games
Not enough evidence to convict. It could've been a regular change and he got to go after Talbot. A lucky break for someone who could've been facing a much stronger punishment.
Jack Capuano-9 games.
Even after one of his players tried to sucker punch an opponent, he didn't get a grasp on the situation. That's simply inexcusable. He's is as guilty as any of the players who received a suspension.
The Islanders organization would also be fined the league minimum for a contract, $500,000. The NHL should let all its teams know that the actions are completely unacceptable.
Is it too harsh, too one-sided? Maybe. But, for those who don't like it, watch the tape. Outside of the Godard incident, the Penguins rarely actually do anything that's suspension worthy.
In two months, though, that might be another story.
What Now?
Well, it's doubtful that Lemieux, despite his comments, would ever leave the Penguins. At this point, he's one of the ambassadors for the game, and the NHL would probably everything in it's power to ensure that he stays in the league.
The rematch, which is scheduled for April 8th, is going to go one of two ways
1) Wrestlemania XV, complete with three seperate line brawls,
2) Absolutely no fighting will actually happen, because Colin Campbell and Gary Bettman will be sitting at ice level.
The real answer? Somewhere between the two.
There's probably going to be three fights for the rematch, as follows
Konopka-Cooke, since Konopka's publicly stated he wanted Cooke and Cooke will probably oblige him.
Martin-Engelland, as a revenge tactic for the sucker punch
Godard-Gillies, for the entire Tangradi situation.
Other than that, it should be a pretty standard affair. In all honesty, the Penguins will either be so hyped that they win by 5, or get too hyped up, care more about setting a physical tone than and lose by 5.
Either way, it won't be anything like the last game.
Because if it is, the NHL might not be able to ever shake it's image as the barbaric professional sport.
