I found this clip of Hockey Night in Canada with Don Cherry talking about the Chris Simon stepping on Jarkko Ruutu incident (see video below). And I have to kind of agree with him. These guys (players like Ruutu who do cheap/dirty/unsportsmanlike things) don't have any fear of being taken to task for what they do because of the instigator rule. If the instigator rule wasn't there I think you wouldn't see guys like Ruutu doing much of their stuff that they usually do, because then enforcers like Chris Simon could go after them and pound in their face, which Simon should have done anyways rather than trying to step/kick Ruutu.
What do you think?
2 comments:
I think the point of Simon's suspension has more to do with his behaviour than Ruutu's. Luckily, noone like Cherry has the power to create any laws or "he had it coming" would be a viable defense. Im not defending Ruutu's behaviour but Simon has a long and well known history of being suspended for inappropriate ways of dealing with incidents. Have a problem with Ruutu? That's what a full mid ice hit is for; ring his bells and leave him flat out on the ice. Stepping on his leg in a crowd the way Simon did shows a strong element of cowardice in his actions. Just because Ruutu is a needler doesnt mean that Simon had to do what he did. Regardless of whether he had it coming, Simon's actions were wrong and that is the reason for his suspension. Not the merits of whether Ruutu had it coming as Don Cherry implied.
To be honest that Coach's Corner was a perfect example of how irrelevant the segment has come. I personally dont give a shit about any of Don Cherry's non hockey opinion and wish for once that he would just STFU and talk about hockey like my tax money is paying him. Last week's episode was more a study of how much of a hypocrite Cherry has become. He used to be entertaining, now he's more like the senile old uncle who blurts out stupid things all the time.
All sports have players who can be considered needlers. A pitcher throwing a pitch high and tight to back a hitter off the plate, a power forward down low that plants an elbow in an opponent's ribs, a pulling guard that has perfected a near-illegal chop block. Just because you don't like all aspects of a player's game does not give you the ok to nearly end his career. Stepping on someone's leg with a razor (last time I looked the edge of an ice skate is very sharp) can never go unpunished. Yes, he deserved the full suspension he got. As Jaimie said, you got a problem with a player, especially a hockey player, hit him HARD. Legal but HARD. He'll remember that long after his playing days are over. Tony L.
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