After handing down one of the longest suspensions in league history, it looked as though the NHL's Department of Player Safety was really throwing down the hammer when comes to late hits and checks to the head.
Just two days into the season, this appears to not be the case, as a handful of questionable hits have already gone without suspension.
A few eyebrows were raised at the consistency of the NHL's Department of Player Safety in the first period of the game between San Jose Sharks and LA Kings, when Kings' center Dustin Brown head-butted San Jose's Logan Couture in the face.
Lucic on Couture: "His comments, saying‘I didn’t know some players weren’t allowed to be hit.’I have no idea why he would say that about me'
— lisa dillman (@reallisa) October 8, 2015
More Lucic: "I get hit as much as I hit.That’s a dumb comment on his part. Whatever. It just adds fuel to the fire for the upcoming games.'
— lisa dillman (@reallisa) October 8, 2015
Lucic received a match penalty for the hit, but no further discipline from the league.
Sure after that game, you could chalk it up to the fact that the Sharks and Kings really don't like each other and their contests tend to be extra physical.
That is, until Thursday's crop of season-openers in which Winnipeg Jet Alexander Burmistrov's elbow made high contact with Patric Bergeron's head. Not only was the hit late, but on a player who already has a history with concussions.
Bergeron gets an elbow to the head and I gasped really loud in horror pic.twitter.com/3xwDFX8asl
— Stephanie (@myregularface) October 8, 2015
Burmistrov also will reportedly not receive further disciplinary action from the Player Safety Department.
To call this unsettling is a bit of an understatement. The league's knowledge of concussions and their effects has grown over the years, and teams go to great lengths to make sure that their players are healthy before hitting the ice. But that doesn't seem to do much good if some head shots are receiving serious suspensions, and others are being dismissed.
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