291 replies to this topic

[LGR4GM]

Several twitter ppl say this is extremely dirty and Pat Kaleta should be suspended for a good long time.
Mark Spector Sports ‏@SportsnetSpec
Kaleta has a "bad rep" 'cause he's been hitting from behind for ages. He's Raffi Torres, but from behind. Enough already @WeveGotTwins

I have watched the hit in slow motion and from about 30 different angles and although yes it looks illegal and yes maybe he should be, but if Kaleta's hit is illegal and suspension-able why isn't the hit on Ennis?  What because Ennis miraculously wasn't injured its all good?  A cross check and the guy goes into the boards is suspensionable but a blatant head smashing into the boards... no one cares.  Clearly the difference is Kaleta on King Richard V. Innocent, hard working Giardi on embellishing younging Ennis.

Edited by LGR4GM, 04 March 2013 - 08:53 AM.

[ThirtyEight]

LGR4GM, on 04 March 2013 - 08:38 AM, said:

Several twitter ppl say this is extremely dirty and Pat Kaleta should be suspended for a good long time.
Mark Spector Sports ‏@SportsnetSpec
Kaleta has a "bad rep" 'cause he's been hitting from behind for ages. He's Raffi Torres, but from behind. Enough already @WeveGotTwins

I have watched the hit in slow motion and from about 30 different angles and although yes it looks illegal and yes maybe he should be, but if Kaleta's hit is illegal and suspension-able why isn't the hit on Ennis?  What because Ennis miraculously wasn't injured its all good?  A cross check and the guy goes into the boards is suspensionable but a blatant head smashing into the boards... no one cares.  Clearly the difference is Kaleta on King Richard V. Innocent, hard working Giardi on embellishing younging Ennis.

Ennis turns his body just before the hit. A better comparison is the hit a carolina player put on Gerbe - which was a 2 minute penalty

[LGR4GM]

ThirtyEight, on 04 March 2013 - 08:41 AM, said:

Ennis turns his body just before the hit. A better comparison is the hit a carolina player put on Gerbe - which was a 2 minute penalty

But its just Gerbe not King Richard of the Great NYR.  It's not worth Shenanigans' time

[inkman]

Kaleta has been hitting from behind for ages?  Where do they get this stuff?  Is Pat dirty?  Sure.  Does he jump into players?  Definitely. Does he hits a good 1-2 seconds after the puck is gone. Regularly.  Hits from behind? Occasionally?

[rbochan]

Anyone saying Kaleta was in the wrong here needs to watch that video again. Richards falls off his skates like a 4 year old and then writhes in agony, grabs his leg, his arm, his neck, and then comes back on the ice without missing a shift.

Just watch it again, and look at his skates as he's hit. it's a total dive.

[That Aud Smell]

Can't say I saw the play as a dive from Richards. The hit on Ennis was a penalty, to be sure, and it may have warranted more than a 2-minute minor, but the hit on Ennis was materially different in terms of when and for how long the player being hit had his #s facing the player delivering the hit. The Kaleta hit is a nasty bit of business, and I'm a little surprised that he's getting 5 games or less (per the telephone conference hearing he's having).

[716]

Richards deserved an Academy Award for the way he was writhing on the ice after the hit. It looked like he was about to go into convulsions. He returned to the ice :50 later.

I'm not saying the hit from behind was right, it was wrong. But the player sold the penalty by remaining on the ice and should've been penalized for delay of game.

[dudacek]

So what's up with the Rangers?
Some punk runs their star from behind and there is no retribution?
You gotta question their team toughness.

[LGR4GM]

Okay I should change the title, it should be Kaleta's cross check on Richards because it sure is hell was not a real hit.

[ThirtyEight]

Richards weight is all on his right skate - his left one is off the ice when Kaleta shoves him, that's what makes it so bad is he goes down instantly rather than stumbling. It also means he is off balance (slightly leaning forwards on one skate). The shove looks reckless to me, and should have been a penalty, but i think it is just a series of stupid/misfortunate events

[sabres4life19]

flip those gloves off you baby.

oh my wrist..wait no oww my neck! well maybe its my leg! oh nevermind i'm good.

Can we talk about how Richards looked behind him before approaching the boards to he was fully aware who was behind him and he put himself in an extremely vulnerable position?

It really looks like Kaleta barely touches him and richards already knew what he was gonna do...

[d4rksabre]

I just don't care. The hits that should be suspensions never are and vice versa. It's all ######.

[LGR4GM]

d4rksabre, on 04 March 2013 - 09:39 AM, said:

I just don't care. The hits that should be suspensions never are and vice versa. It's all ######.

I tend to agree.

[Glass Case Of Emotion]

So it's a phone hearing = five or fewer games.

[sabres4life19]

LastPommerFan, on 04 March 2013 - 09:44 AM, said:

So it's a phone hearing = five or fewer games.

i think someone actually sd its less than 5 for a phone call

[SDS]

rbochan, on 04 March 2013 - 08:45 AM, said:

Anyone saying Kaleta was in the wrong here needs to watch that video again. Richards falls off his skates like a 4 year old and then writhes in agony, grabs his leg, his arm, his neck, and then comes back on the ice without missing a shift.

Just watch it again, and look at his skates as he's hit. it's a total dive.

Yes, Brad Richards flung his head and neck into the bottom of the boards. Good call. Completely believable.

[Suffer_enuff]

No question, this was an unecessary hit by Kaleta - you're down a man already.  No need to even touch Richards at that point.  However, I think Richards definitley embellished, but when he did he did it awkwardly enough that he did stun himself a bit. If it had been Hodgson doing the hitting instead of Kaleta, it would have been two minutes.  Sh*t like this really boils my blood. Play like a man, for cryin' in the sink. I think if I was a Sabre on the ice after Richards came back, I'd be telling him every time he came near me to keep his head up, 'cause next time he's going headfirst into the boards for real.   Friggin' p*ssy.  

Edited by Sabre Dance, 04 March 2013 - 09:56 AM.

[26CornerBlitz]

Sabre Dance, on 04 March 2013 - 09:56 AM, said:

No question, this was an unecessary hit by Kaleta - you're down a man already.  No need to even touch Richards at that point.  However, I think Richards definitley embellished, but when he did he did it awkwardly enough that he did stun himself a bit. If it had been Hodgson doing the hitting instead of Kaleta, it would have been two minutes.  Sh*t like this really boils my blood. Play like a man, for cryin' in the sink. I think if I was a Sabre on the ice after Richards came back, I'd be telling him every time he came near me to keep his head up, 'cause next time he's going headfirst into the boards for real.   Friggin' p*ssy.  

Completely ridiculous statement.

[Glass Case Of Emotion]

SDS, on 04 March 2013 - 09:52 AM, said:

Yes, Brad Richards flung his head and neck into the bottom of the boards. Good call. Completely believable.

I don't think he was even embellishing after the hit. I think he's just a ###### when it comes to pain. He was off balance, got just enough from Patty to go down, hit the ice before the boards, and smacked his face. He's just a ######.

[Peppy22]

So Richards almost dies and doesn't miss a shift. Says he hit is head and isn't going to the locker room for concussion tests?

[SwampD]

SDS, on 04 March 2013 - 09:52 AM, said:

Yes, Brad Richards flung his head and neck into the bottom of the boards. Good call. Completely believable.

Why does Richards go down on his left knee? If you are trying to stop yourself from falling, don't you put your leg out in front of you? He was diving and it got away from him.

[26CornerBlitz]

Rule 41 -- Boarding

The boarding rule was amended in several ways in order to put the focus on the violent -- and possibly dangerous -- contact with the boards rather than the actual point of contact.

This season, a boarding penalty will be assessed to a player who checks or pushes a defenseless player in a manner that causes the player to have a potentially violent and/or dangerous impact with the boards. The word "pushes" was added to the rule and "defenseless" replaced the word "vulnerable."

The onus now is going to be on the player applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenseless position. If he is, the player applying the hit must avoid or, at the very least, minimize the contact.

"What we did is we took the onus off the violence of the hit itself and added the word 'push' in there," Shanahan said. "It really has more to do with the violence in the collision with the boards. We don't necessarily think it has to be a violent hit to cause a violent crash, so we broadened the rule by putting in the word 'push.'"

http://video.nhl.com...nsole?id=123679

Edited by 26CornerBlitz, 04 March 2013 - 10:26 AM.

[Double-J]

LGR4GM, on 04 March 2013 - 09:43 AM, said:

I tend to agree.

Same. When Shanahan began the whole video explanations idea, I was very much in favor of it because I thought it would help keep players/fans honest about what was or was not fair play. But I'm not sure it's worked out that way.

[bcardona]

sabres4life19, on 04 March 2013 - 09:01 AM, said:

flip those gloves off you baby.

oh my wrist..wait no oww my neck! well maybe its my leg! oh nevermind i'm good.

Can we talk about how Richards looked behind him before approaching the boards to he was fully aware who was behind him and he put himself in an extremely vulnerable position?

It really looks like Kaleta barely touches him and richards already knew what he was gonna do...

Yup.  It looks like a dive that went awry to me.
2 minutes Kaleta - hitting from behind (shoving, pushing a little bit really)
2 minutes Richards - diving
Would never happen, but if roles were reversed it might.

Edited by bcardona, 04 March 2013 - 10:44 AM.

[sabre snipe]

Can't even call it a hit. Maybe it was illegal, or a little dirty, but not even close to what people are claiming it to be. Tortorella, "one of the dortiest hits I've ever seen". What a joke, all the guy does is whine.

This was simply Kaleta vs the almighty Richards and the only reason it is getting so much attention. That, and Richards crying like a baby to come back 30 seconds later and be fine. 99 times out of 100 Richards doesn't even fall from that little love tap by kaleta

[Skibum]

I don't know about this one. Yes, Kaleta was in the wrong to check Richards when he was in a somewhat defenseless position, but the amount of force applied (very little) is not consistent with the velocity of Richards' plunge into the boards. After watching it several times, I don't even understand how a world-class skater could be knocked off his feet by such a slight push. Nor do I see how you could determine intent to inure. It looked like a little nudge gone wrong.

And I hate to accuse a player of embellishing, but Richards was writhing like he was being attacked by starved piranhas, and he doesn't even miss a shift? Really?

I am not a big Kaleta fan - I think that while he has gotten better, he has been an ebarrassment at times. But in this case I think 1 or 2 games would suffice. I think he'll get a lot more, though.

Edited by Skibum, 04 March 2013 - 11:05 AM.

[Skibum]

[LGR4GM]

Kaleta is getting called out on this because:
1) it was Richards
2) rangers player getting hit and Shenanigans all over it
3) it was Kaleta
4) this league continually proves the sabres are a bastard child that they hate
5) the national media is blowing it out of proportion
6) Richards acted like he was about to die... which was BS fyi.

[SwampD]

26CornerBlitz, on 04 March 2013 - 10:23 AM, said:

Rule 41 -- Boarding

The boarding rule was amended in several ways in order to put the focus on the violent -- and possibly dangerous -- contact with the boards rather than the actual point of contact.

This season, a boarding penalty will be assessed to a player who checks or pushes a defenseless player in a manner that causes the player to have a potentially violent and/or dangerous impact with the boards. The word "pushes" was added to the rule and "defenseless" replaced the word "vulnerable."

The onus now is going to be on the player applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenseless position. If he is, the player applying the hit must avoid or, at the very least, minimize the contact.

"What we did is we took the onus off the violence of the hit itself and added the word 'push' in there," Shanahan said. "It really has more to do with the violence in the collision with the boards. We don't necessarily think it has to be a violent hit to cause a violent crash, so we broadened the rule by putting in the word 'push.'"

http://video.nhl.com...nsole?id=123679

I hate these subtle changes. It is taking hitting out of the game rule by rule. So, all a player has to do is turn his back on someone and he is off limits to a hit? It's like the kid that always calls a time out just before he is going to get crush plaing funny fumble.

[Eleven]

SwampD, on 04 March 2013 - 11:16 AM, said:

I hate these subtle changes. It is taking hitting out of the game rule by rule. So, all a player has to do is turn his back on someone and he is off limits to a hit? It's like the kid that always calls a time out just before he is going to get crush plaing funny fumble.

1.  Did that hit really not look dangerous to you?  I understand the part about Richards rolling around and then getting up; I mean the hit itself.  Did it really not look dangerous?

2.  I don't want to know what "funny fumble is," do I?

[Potato]

As a general statement (this incident aside), there is absolutely no doubt in my mind guys know how to get calls by taking a hit along the boards to get a boarding call.  I've seen Kaleta himself do it.  These guys dive in front of 100 MPH slap shots.  They dive at pucks knowing they'll go right into the goal post.  They dive at pucks on the offensive end knowing they'll slam into the boards.  But a guy who wears a visor wouldn't take one for the team when they need a power play?

Regarding the suspension Kaleta gets, Shanny just gave 4 games to the Flyers player Zolnierczyk who took a full speed run, jumped off his skates, and elbowed a player in the head concussing him.  This Kaleta hit is nowhere near as dangerous as that one.  Not even close.  This is just catching a guy in a bad position.  If it was Pommer and not Kaleta, I doubt it would get any sort of suspension.  As it is, one or two game based on reputation.

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

It was a stupid and dangerous hit.

When Richards went down....i was expecting a stretcher to come out...10 game suspension...and a brawl by the end of the game.

The fact that Richards came right back out is why people are peeved and should be, because he looked like a potential rehab patient for the next 2 months.....but that doesn't stop the hit from being wrong.

Kaleta gets 3 games is my guess. 2 for the stupid hit, and 1 for being Kaleta.

Some guys are just pusses....Sekera went down against the B's like a cannonball took off his leg. 40 minutes later Ruff says it's a charliehorse. I thought Sekera was done for the year considering his reaction.

[inkman]

Ghost of Dwight Drane, on 04 March 2013 - 11:36 AM, said:

Some guys are just pusses....

That makes Brad Richards the king of the pusses

Edited by inkman, 04 March 2013 - 11:41 AM.

[LGR4GM]

I read this and laughed a lot
Larry Brooks ‏@NYP_Brooksie
Kevin Pollock, referee 10 feet away from Kaleta/Richards, did not signal for penalty on play. NHL should convene hearing on that as well.

Seriously Rangers? Seriously?  You guys are the biggest bunch of babies.  I can't believe it but clearly the Sabres aren't the softest wieners in the league anymore.

Kaleta should go for 1-4games, but holy crap ppl its being blown way out of proportion

[Eleven]

LGR4GM, on 04 March 2013 - 11:50 AM, said:

I read this and laughed a lot
Larry Brooks ‏@NYP_Brooksie
Kevin Pollock, referee 10 feet away from Kaleta/Richards, did not signal for penalty on play. NHL should convene hearing on that as well.

Seriously Rangers? Seriously?  You guys are the biggest bunch of babies.  I can't believe it but clearly the Sabres aren't the softest wieners in the league anymore.

Kaleta should go for 1-4games, but holy crap ppl its being blown way out of proportion

It's Brooks...

[Braedon]

Eleven, on 04 March 2013 - 11:27 AM, said:

1.  Did that hit really not look dangerous to you?  I understand the part about Richards rolling around and then getting up; I mean the hit itself.  Did it really not look dangerous?

Ghost of Dwight Drane, on 04 March 2013 - 11:36 AM, said:

It was a stupid and dangerous hit.

When Richards went down....i was expecting a stretcher to come out...10 game suspension...and a brawl by the end of the game.

The fact that Richards came right back out is why people are peeved and should be, because he looked like a potential rehab patient for the next 2 months.....but that doesn't stop the hit from being wrong.

Wholeheartedly agree here.  I can't believe people are trying to downplay that hit.  Explain to me how you embellish end-range cervical extension/rotation against a stationary object (or why you would even want to?).  It looked awful in real time and could have ended a lot worse that it did.  I don't care if Richards is a puss, It was a boneheaded of Kaleta to perform the action.

That said, Kaleta's not the only one and the bush league that is the NHL continues to create double standards.

Edited by Braedon, 04 March 2013 - 12:01 PM.

[Glass Case Of Emotion]

Which is worse for Hockey?

Kaleta's boneheaded hit, clearly from behind, clearly into the boards

-or-

B. Richards' Soccer Style injury embellishment

[sabre snipe]

This should be of no surprise, but Richards will not practice today. Of course the rangers have to make it look like he's actually injured now

[Eleven]

LastPommerFan, on 04 March 2013 - 12:08 PM, said:

Which is worse for Hockey?

Kaleta's boneheaded hit, clearly from behind, clearly into the boards

-or-

B. Richards' Soccer Style injury embellishment

We really don't know too much about the embellishment.  Maybe he was "stung."  Does Richards have a history of embellishment, like Roy did?  I don't recall one.

[d4rksabre]

sabre snipe, on 04 March 2013 - 12:14 PM, said:

This should be of no surprise, but Richards will not practice today. Of course the rangers have to make it look like he's actually injured now

Ah the old injured ######.