(5) Philadelphia Flyers vs (4) Pittsburgh Penguins Round 1: There will be blood

[Forty_Sixand2]

Way low for both, IMO.....Neal was out there to do one thing, hurt people and Asham.....he deserved 4 for the cross check alone, not to mention going Bertuzzi on Schenn.

 

[Dacks]

Dave Molinari ‏ @MolinariPG
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FavoritedFavorite · Close Open Details BREAKING NEWS: Neal suspended for one game, Asham for four.

Pretty much exactly what I predicted.

I wouldn't be surprised to find out the one game was for the hit on Giroux, with none for the hit on Couturier. I know most fans will have trouble agreeing on this, but the hit on Couturier was an accident - very similar circumstances as Steckel's hit on Crosby (which I've defended against many Pens fans many times).

Puck is turned over, Crosby / Couturier watching puck, Steckel / Neal trying to join the play and can't avoid contact. Looks worse because Crosby / Couturier aren't prepared for hit at all.

 

[Dacks]

Way low for both, IMO.....Neal was out there to do one thing, hurt people and Asham.....he deserved 4 for the cross check alone, not to mention going Bertuzzi on Schenn.

I agree on Asham, but 4 games is pretty much as harsh as it gets in today's NHL.

Although I expect Torres to get the book thrown at him, a la Cooke last season.

 

[Maverick426h]

I love Jonesy and especially Clement. I actually like JJ quite a bit too.

I personally always look forward to the games where Clement has taken the place of Jones. You can't beat Jackson and Clement together.

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

I don't think the Coutourier(sp) hit was accidental at all, but that is just me....

 

[Maverick426h]

I don't think the Coutourier(sp) hit was accidental at all, but that is just me....

Couturier. Not accidental either. No chance in hell. Neal is no idiot. He knew what he was doing.

 

[flyersfan4706]

If we win tomorrow then whatever. If not...

 

[Dacks]

Yeah, I pretty much called it exactly:

James Neal suspended 1 game Video - NHL VideoCenter

(If someone knows how to embed it properly, please do.)

Again, hit on Couturier looks bad when you just see the hit, but Shanahan's video breaks it down pretty well. Neal turns to join the play and it's pretty much impossible at that point to avoid contact with Couturier. If he hadn't been looking back at the puck, he could have avoided Neal or braced for contact, but he was and it made the hit look worse.

Now, I will concede that maybe Neal deserved more for the hit on Giroux. But once again, this is the NHL. I'm all for longer suspensions, but only if they apply to all teams.

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

Comparable?

[YOUTUBE]J-vGuHLIPoc[/YOUTUBE]


Really???

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

Neal "left his feet to brace himself for a hit" according to Shanahan. Physics disagrees with that idea.....but whatever....

 

[Darkstone42]

I'm with Dacks. Probably could have (maybe should have) gotten more for Giroux, but I thought the same thing Dacks did when I saw it live, and when I watch it in slow-motion.

Both players turned at about the same time and headed in the same direction, and they weren't far apart when they did. Neal also turned his left shoulder, which was farther from Couturier's head, into the hit, which made it look like he was trying to minimize contact to some degree. Had he turned his right shoulder into the hit, he would have caught Couturier square in the jaw, as opposed to mostly getting chest and getting a little chin.

 

[flyersfan4706]

On a side note, Sid has fucking lost it.

Crosby says Penguins don't regret Game 3 fireworks - Penguins vs Flyers - 2012 Stanley Cup Conference Quarterfinals

 

[Dacks]

Comparable?

[YOUTUBE]J-vGuHLIPoc[/YOUTUBE]


Really???

Comparable doesn't mean they look identical. They are comparable in the ways I mentionned.

Look, I know you guys are pissed about the hit, but try for once in your life to play devil's advocate.

Lots of Pens fans, including some here, still think to this day that Steckel on Crosby was intentional. I heard all sorts of bullshit arguments like "if it was an accident, why didn't he look back??!?".

It's the same thing here. If you want to see the worst in this, you will. If you want to try looking at the other side, you'll at least accept the possibility of it being an accident.

 

[Dacks]

Neal "left his feet to brace himself for a hit" according to Shanahan. Physics disagrees with that idea.....but whatever....

Darkstone and I are both Physics majors and we agree, so...

 

[element1286]

Thought Asham would get more, but makes sense for Neal.

 

[flyersfan4706]

Well, I want some retaliation tomorrow.

 

[Darkstone42]

Darkstone and I are both Physics majors and we agree, so...

I assume Shanahan isn't a physics major, so he probably doesn't understand what "brace" really means.

Jumping, if it is not launching, reduces the violence of a collision. If you run into a guy with his shoulder down, you'll feel it more than if you run into a guy jumping in the air. There's less static friction, so the colliding body is more apt to "give."

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

Darkstone and I are both Physics majors and we agree, so...

I don't understand how leaping into the guy is a way to defend yourself from a hit that you see coming but he doesn't.....

 

[Dacks]

I assume Shanahan isn't a physics major, so he probably doesn't understand what "brace" really means.

Jumping, if it is not launching, reduces the violence of a collision. If you run into a guy with his shoulder down, you'll feel it more than if you run into a guy jumping in the air. There's less static friction, so the colliding body is more apt to "give."

Yep.

Anyway, I propose more discussion of this hit in the Shanahan thread further down? We're having the same discussion in two places.

Retaliation discussion can continue here, of course.

 

[pixburgher66]

Well, I want some retaliation tomorrow.

Please goon it up...I'd trade that in for a W.