Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Get well, patCHes (oh yeah, Habs 4, Bs 1)



I have to be honest with you. I've been lying in bed awake for three hours, dreading to write this post. When we decided at FHF headquarters eairler this week that I was writing the review of the Bs game, I was so stoked. Now, frankly, I wish I wasn't a Habs blogger.

I kid, I kid, I love this place and all of you guys. But really, I'm just dreading giving my opinion here. No matter what I say, it's going to be wrong. Everyone will disagree with it. Puck Daddy and other hockey blogs will link to this with the "FHF says that Chara hit was dirty" or "FHF believes Chara wasn't intending to injure" or "FHF says Chara is a big fat shaved gorilla". That's just way too much responsibility, and I don't want it. All I ever wanted to do was have some fun and make some jokes and ogle some half naked chicks.

So before I get this over with, let's take a step back and remember what's important here - Max patCHes is lying in the Montreal General Hospital. No matter what you thought of the hit, the aftermath was scary. You seriously could have thought he was dead. His eyes were closed and he didn't move for what seemed like an eternity. For 15 minutes there, I literally felt sick. Thank goodness the Habs organization knows how to use the Twitter machine, and we found out soon enough he was alive, conscious, and moving his limbs. This morning the reports have him suffering a concussion. Compared to death or a broken neck, that's great news. PatCHes, we're all thinking of you. Get well.

OK enough dilly-dallying, here goes. Hmmm...
*looks around*
*makes coffee*
*pours coffee*
*adds shot of Irish whiskey to coffee*
*drinks*
*drinks Irish whiskey straight from bottle*

OK, seriously, here goes. All I can tell you is what I see in the video. And believe me, I've watched it about a 396,567 times by now, on TV and YouTube, in fast speed in slow-mo, backwards and forwards and upside down. Here's what I see. Chara maybe starts hitting Max with his shoulder. However, pretty quickly that shoulder becomes a forearm to the head / neck area, and that arm extends, pushing the head / neck area away. And it's not like you can make the excuse that Chara towers over him, patCHes is 6'2", a giant among Habs forwards. Fact - Max did not have the puck. So what do I think?

Sorry sports fans still anxiously awaiting one stupid blogger's opinion, I still don't know. That may seem like a (possibly drunken) copout, but here's the problem. As HF10 wrote in an email last night:

"Ugly, reckless, stupid yeah. Malicious? Christ I hope not."

That's the thing, you can't really know what's in a player's head, can you? The reactions to this have varied from "a pretty banal hit that just happened in the wrong place" (Big fat Bob McKenzie) to "Chara knew exactly where he was and what he was doing and was getting even for Max's little shove in the back after that OT winner in the January game" (antiCHambre). Chara has denied he had any intent to injure. Do I believe that? Well, no, but I frankly have a hard time believing that even a shaved gorilla wanted to see a player killed or paralyzed. I think Arpon Basu summed up my feelings nicely: "I can't convince myself that Chara wanted that exact outcome. He wanted something, but not that."

So if you're looking for someone to lead the angry pitchfork mob, you've come to the wrong place. The problem is, this is just Day 1 of this discussion. We've all got to take a deep breath, be rational and civil, and politely disagree with each other. Until the NHL decides Bob McKenzie is right and gives Chara a token one-game suspension. Then we can go apeshit.

Oh yeah, Habs played a dynamite hockey game, using their skill and speed to cruise to a 4-0 lead before the incident. Too bad a dandy 40 minutes was forgotten in 2 seconds.

145 comments:

Fishfeet said...

I'll go with what one of you guys said last night: I would rather have taken a loss than having seen that.

matt - ftc said...

Howard Berger weighed in this morning on Fan 590 in Toronto, "I don't even think he deserved a penalty." To their credit, the hosts were a bit baffled by that comment and spent most of the morning calling this hit reckless.

Chester said...

OK I don't fucking understand what is happening here. Why is everybody dancing around ???? That big ugly demented fucking goon smashed Max's head into the pole. Point final. OK ?!? Everybody saw it. He is mean, he has a temper, he is dirty, he uses his size to smash people around. He is the poster boy for the fucking Beaners. He wants to go around doing this to people but he is really sad when somebody gets hurt, awwww poor Chara .... Well fuck you forever you bastard. You fully intended to do that, I watched it live and in HD. Don't even talk to me. Jebus it's 8:40 and I need a drink ...

Anonymous said...

Two stuff:

we need some fan vigilantism on Charass and also, please review the game, Lars deserves it

Steve said...

FUCK YOU 29,(said politely(: ) oh I did not mean that, so I guess I wont be banned? With your great power does comes great responsibility and sometimes stickhandling beats shooting.

For me its a question between attempted murder and criminal negligence. If you get pulled over for impaired and blow .24, the courts don't say, well he never killed anybody lets plea it down to careless. No they nail your ass to the wall because you could have killed someone. Thats the position fucking apeman is in. He needs at least 10 games and psychological counseling.

Bottom line its like your mother always said"cut it out or someone is going to lose an eye"

Get well soon Patches.
GYGHG.

Steve said...

@anon, are you saying you have no faith in the NHL Justice system and fans will have to take the law into their own hands? You name the place i will meet you there with a Chara effigy which will have twice his IQ and we will burn the fucker, and dance. AND Stab him repeatedly in the cock.

2ndly yes along with the real tradgedy of the patches hit there is the metaphysical dissappointment that 1) Lego did not get his well deserved hat trick, had Patches not been maimed, he would have got it. 2)His place of honour on the FHF blog complete with a resplendent GG11 graphic has been postponed, but I am sure there will be lots of occasions in the near future to celebrate his comming out.

UK3X said...

@matt - no one cares what hockey writers in Toronto think - they are leaf fans so know nothing about real hockey and are therefore unqualified to comment. I have watched the videos over and over again and read McKenzie's take on it as well as anything else i could see. The NESN guys last night were certain that it was not intentional but didn't disagree with the punishment at the time. In truth, oly Chara knows what was in his mind at the time. I remember a game I played way back when. I was playing defense for my team and racing to catch a speedy winger as he headed along the boards. As he crossed the blueline I caught him up and put my shoulder into him in hopes of slowing him down. The guy went flying into the boards and lay there motionless for what seemed like an age. I was mobbed by his team mates and called every name you could think of. I was kicked out of the game and the coach told my Dad I was a disgrace. I was only about 12 at the time. The thing is - I wasn't trying to hurt the guy. I was trying to make sure he didn't get past me and score a goal. I knew that - but I don't think anyone else thought so. It was a clean hit and not on the same level as what happened last night. What I'm getting at here is that only Chara knows what he intended. I was perfectly happy with myself and slept well that night. It was a clean hit and I knew I was not trying to hurt him. The boy I hit was fine and probably scored more goals on me later in the season. My punishment was that I missed the rest of the game. I took it and moved on. Chara was ejected and might receive more punishment in the next couple of days. Let him take it and let's move on. If he meant to hurt Max, he has to deal with that himself. Hopefully Max will be fine too and I know we are all praying that he is. Call him whatever names you will - Chara is a hockey player first and foremost and a pretty good one at that. I hope he didn't mean to hurt Max...but I'll never know for sure - only Chara knows what he intended on that play.

Anonymous said...

Hi folks

I love your blog but I'm not really into continuous commenting but just this once...

A dreadful hit. This is a game played for money and to provide entertainment (don't get me wrong, I'm as committed as any of you - I put down 'Habs' in the religion box on hospital forms) abut there are limits. Recklessness is recognizing a risk and continuing regardless (whether defined objectively or subjectively, and just by putting it in that way some of you can tell my background). Recognizing a risk and continuing regardless = intent. This was an intentional act that Chara is an experienced player and would know it was likely to injure. This goes beyond just a penalty or a suspension. So there.

the Maritimer said...

All I'll say is: Maybe the ape didn't mean to decapitate Max, but he sure enough meant to hurt him. He (the ape) is just fucking lucky he isn't in a Bertuzzi situation. Max could have been paralyzed from that hit. Ten games minimum.

Anonymous said...

Is not being able to type without leaving typos an early sign of Alzheimer's?

Steve said...

@Kmax, If it were Pronger or Matt Cook the situation would be clear cut. Chara does like to make punishing hits, and he has to know most of his hip checks along the boards are right at head level for many players. That is good tough hockey part of the game. I am with the majority that want to believe no one would want to do something that would have the outcome of that hit. Still there have to be serious consequences.

I hate to agree with Cherry but he is consistent with his rant against dumb design in the rink and in the equipment. That barrier should be on some kind of spring.

UK3X said...

...on the other hand - HF10 did forewarn us in his epic Open Thread yesterday when he said...There is no reason to respect Zdeno Chara's cheapshots,...so I now have to think again about all of this.

Daddy Says said...

The hit started clean enough.... It ended dirty, nasty and fucking horrible. Intent? FUCK intent. He could have killed patCHes. I find it.... convenient.... that he chose to hit him in that spot. PatCHes was there ALL night. He was on fucking fire! He was winning the foot race and chara knew it. He didn't want to get beat, again. TFS said it best post game "its your job to know what's where..." At this level you'd be lying if you claimed not to know where you are on the ice.
So the gorrila is a)reckless b)stupid c)guilty.
@kmaxx (and others) you are right only chara knows. God help us if he meant it... bottom line is he did it and now patCHes has to live through it. Get well patCHes.
Fuck off and die boons.

Habsfan10 said...

Great line from '67 Sound over at PPP on whether it was just bad timing:

"This was “bad timing” like it’s bad timing if I push someone who happens to be standing on the edge of a cliff."

Chara knew exactly where he and Pacioretty were. Check HI/O for the twitter pic.

KML said...

Sorry if this has been said elsewhere, but this is no different from the Bertuzzi incident.

Neither party intended to seriously injure the other player, but they sure as hell intended to hurt them and each act was intentional.

Just like Bertuzzi, Chara should have to suffer the consequences of his act.

bea.habs.fan said...

great summary of the feeling this morning 29!
last night I was livid looking for my rioting clothes and smelly rotting anything in my fridge.
upon discovering I did not habe any of the above, I took a deep breath tried not to throw up as they kept on showing the hit and prayed for it to look worse than it was.

only a psychopath would have wanted that hit exactly there, and as much as I don't like Chara (mostly cause he's a bruins), I don't think he's one of those

Anonymous said...

@STEVE Excellent point with your reference. If it is ok with you I intend to steal it and use it as my own when discussing the hit at work today.
@H29 - I know you are in a tough position but we look to this site to lead the riot and even though your heart might not be in it I think you have a responsibility to at least rouse a little rebel and get the ball rolling. We come here because we want a change from the endless agreement from tsn and the like and the frequent Hab hating media. You are the spark we are the fire!

Oleg Petrov said...

I keep hearing about Chara's clean reputation, and I want to believe it. But he seems to get an unusual hate on for the Canadiens, so I'm skeptical. I can recall a number of occasions when he was clearly trying to maim Alex Kovalev and Kovalev was just deft enough to get out of his way - the famous helmetless goal from a few years ago happened when Chara elbowed Kovalev's helmet off. Whenever he'd go after Kovalev, the look on Chara's face would be murder.

moeman said...

Way to set the table for the discussion 29. Pass the whiskey.

I read blob mackenzie's hit piece and it saddens me that he is looked upon as one of the reputable, saner reporters. He's no different. When he starts off with "The Montreal Canadiens' fans have it all figured out. Life imprisonment for Boston Bruin defenceman Zdeno Chara. Throw away the key." (yes I read the entire article) I say fuck you tsn and your fucking Habs hate.

Steve said...

@anon, feel free to steal my thoughts, its rare they have a value less than zero anyway.

Steve said...

The National Post has captured the big picture well. NHL justice is mickey mouse, and it needs an immediate upgrade.

Look at high sticking, same standard should apply to head hits. The problem is what to do about a good old bodycheck where the shoulder hits the head on a head on head collision, that should not be a penalty.

Steve said...

Something else lost from last night was to savor Ryan Whites win over Boywoodchuck, and the fact that Chocula was on side with it. Otherwise having cost the penalty for instigating he would not have seen the generous ice time later in the game.

Young HF29 said...

hell yeah Ryan White! and i enjoyed Kirk screaming at the ref for the extra 2 minutes while CHokula stood there looking perturbed

Habsfan10 said...

Bruins fans called White a "minor league muscle call-up". Actually, he's been up with the big club for awhile. Jimmy Bonneau and Alex Henry would have been minor league muscle call-ups ... and they would have rained hell on your dipshit goons heads, boyos.

Anyone see Thornton frothing at the mouth on the bench after White beat Boychuk? Anyone see more than two minutes of ice time for that useless goon after? Exactly. He's entirely dead weight once Boston needs to chase a game.

soperman said...

Get well soon, PatCHes.

I can't say I know what Chara was thinking when he pushed him into the pole. I will say that I have no confidence in the NHL to give an appropriate punishment. Chara should be in Campbell's office explaining his actions... but they will likely just give him a token two games or whatever they feel is the minimum they can get away with.

There is something seriously wrong with a league that factors the extent of an injury into their punishment. PatCHes could have been easily paralyzed.

Get better soon, PatCHes.

Steve said...

Now that the dust has settled and assuming Patches recovers for the playoffs, what should the penalty for Apeshit be.

He should be given the choice of his cock on a block with Orangemans hand on a knife (pointy knife, like an icepick) or.... Ten games seems to be a consensus, but it would be totally meaningless. The Bruins will still make the playoffs, Montreal will still face the playoffs without a gamebreaking player. There has to be at least a 3 game suspension in the playoff first round.

HeadHunter said...

All has been stated eloquently/passionly/misguidely enough so far so no reason to really chime in. The hit, intentional or not, was unacceptable. No puck, late hit, slew foot, elbow push. I, like others, watched the clip far too many times for my liking. Once was too many. I don't want to believe the place was chosen but that final extra push with the elbow as seen in the Twitter pic on H I/O confirms the worst of it. The fact that Chara is a big man doesn't give him a pass. He has skills which should not be overlooked. The fact that his size is both an asset and a handicap needs to be considered as well. Just because his a$$ is at Gionta's head level doesn't mean he can get away with half of the "big hits" he does. Lots of his hits are bone-crushingly effective. Almost all legal. No one should make an excuse about timing, positioning, height discrepancy on a play like that. There is nothing you can say except get well Patches.

That being said (though I can't say it enough) it is time to move on, hope for a shred of justice from the league, savor the victory of skill over brawn, and hope for Patches complete recovery, irregardless of timetable.

THAT being said, White laid the law down and I loved the switch to Southpaw for the extra uppercuts.

Eric said...

While I don't think Chara meant it to be that bad, it was very reckless, especially for his size. And

I think the NHL needs to implement a rule that suspends players without pay for reckless hits such as this one for AT LEAST as long as the player they injured misses games. And only be allowed back when the injured player is deemed healthy enough to play by doctors.

Maybe then players would begin to think twice. I don't it's fair that Chara makes a decision to commit a hit that could see patches miss the rest of the season and get a 2, 4, 5 or even 10 game suspension.

Whether it was his intent or not to injure, it was a dirty, illegal, reckless and pointless hit that put another player in harm's way.

Boob Gainey said...

You guys are lawyers right? The law deals with the issue of intent doesn't it?

If I want to intimidate someone and things go wrong am I still responsible?

Say I'm driving and a cyclist has just given me the finger, and I swerve into his path to scare him, maybe knock him off his bike and skin his knee, but instead he hits his head and dies.

Can I say - hey I never meant to kill him? Of course I didn't, but that I'm still guilty of something.

Steve said...

OH FUCK, the damage from the Patches hit has already taken out TITS. Chocula is going to put him back in MEX prison.

That alone should cost Apeman an extra 3 games.

Steve said...

@Headhunter, good point about White, people will think twice about fighting him because he can hurt you two ways.

GoBanana said...

Because when the sun shines, we'll shine together
Hope that he'll be here forever
Say he'll always be our friend
Take a contract, he'll stick around till the end

Now that it's raining more than ever
Know that we'll still have each other
We can stand under his umbr-Eller
We can stand under his umbr-Eller, Eller, Eller Eller

Melly said...

Twitter tells me Patches has fractured vertabrae along with his severe concussion. Jesus. Chilling how close he came to being paralyzed.

Good luck, Max.

Jaybird said...

I am so sick of that bush league NHL if it weren't for the Habs I wouldn't watch a single faceoff anymore.

I am not "tricked" by the NHL brass or any of the analysts anymore when situations like this arise. I haven't been for about five years.

As a player of the game not a fucking soul can tell me that Chara didn't know exactly what he was doing. Are we tricked into believing these highly coordinated professional athletes can't control their movements due to "high speeds" or "it all happens so fast"? I am not anymore.

Sure Chara may only have meant to knock him out for a minute; not three! But the intent was there. And all this bullshit about Chara not being dirty is hogwash. This is the same man who shattered Raitis Ivanans face with an uppercut while he was on his knees...after he let Chara back to his feet to resume fighting nonetheless.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2eM57WVweA

Nothing cheap about that eh?

Get well Patches! It fuckin sucks losin ya.

Steve said...

@Melly thats not good news, I hope it is not another Steve Moore situation.

Chester said...

Major concussion, neck injury, and possible fractures .... RDS

GoldenGirl11 said...

Broken vertebrae. Fuck.

They call me Reef Halliday said...

Get well Max and Fuck you Apeman for taking me out of my happy place last night. It was a great game until you had to sully it with a hit like that. Fucking goons.

Flying Toaster said...

Was the intent to injure? Maybe, maybe not. Was it the Ape's intent to slam his head into the turnbuckle? Most definitely! People apologizing Chara's behavior absolutely sicken me. That's like saying someone who beats his wife daily didn't mean to kill her. Might not have been your goal buddy but you chose to do the actions that led to it with full awareness of the possible consequences.

You willingly, voluntarily, purposely drove Max's head into that turnbuckle. Wether you wanted to fuck him up or not is irrelevant at this point.

Steve said...

You dont have to be a Soap Opera doctor to diagnose Patches is done for the season. Will he ever play again? Will he be the same player? There are dozens of guys I can think of who suffered far lesser tramu and their careers were off the rails.

However that is life in the big city, its part of professional sport, bottom line part of the biz, Patches will get fucked over and 20 years from now someone on this blog will say, yep just like the hit on Patches.

Its unfortunate that someone somewhere did not have the wherewithall, the talent and the passion to start a class action law suit against Chara, the Boston Bruins and the NHL, for taking away our enjoyment of Montreal winning the cup. Who can say that had Patches not been injured Montreal would not have won the cup. I place my personal damages at about $400,000 dollars. That is being conservative. The City of Montreal, the Province of Quebec and the Harper Government losses are in the hundreds of millions. Look at all the overtime the police and fire departments will lose. So in summary I would like to be party to a Billion Dollar collective action law suit.

Steve said...

It seems the chances of Max every playing again are very slim. Lots of references to similar injuries in NFL. Its not that he wont be able to play, its that the risk of dire consequences should he take another bad hit are way past the threshold of acceptable risk.

FUCK FUCK FUCK

Anonymous said...

BGL is still on our payroll. Can we bring him back and sick him on Chara on the 24th? We could do it Phlyers style and advertise the game as an MMA matchup.

I feel sick at the thought that a player who's been one of the brightest rising stars this season and looked like an integral part of our team's future may have already had his career cut short.

b said...

Beyond reckless. I am a criminal defense lawyer and a defenseman of some 45 years plus. Chara knew where he was on the ice. He extended his arm to move Patches head over the boards. He could have kept his arm in and angled him off. He didn't. I think this needs to be reviewed by a crown prosecutor. We tell juries that "One intends the natural and probable consequences of their conduct." Chara should be done. If not, someone will extract vengeance and Chara will end up with one eye and someone else will get prosecuted.

inthereds said...

@ Steve... Let's pray the chances of Max Pac playing again get better than slim.
I recall both Gary Roberts and Eric Cole had the same said about them with their respective neck injuries.

On a happier note, Fuck yeah... nice centre ice fight where it seemed to me, White, in the words of the sadly departed Godfather of Gonzo journalism Hunter S Thompson, "beat him like a gong."

Steve said...

I was thinking about Roberts, but

"not surprisingly, Roberts' relentless physical game began to break down his own body over time. After missing the remainder of the 1994-95 season and much of the 1995-96 season, he was forced into retirement in 1996. Bone spurs in his neck caused nerve damage and numbing in his arms. Doctors would be forced to operate, and told Roberts he had to give up the game he loved."

Patches has a NFL injury, Steve Moore also had broken vertebrae.

Bill 101 said...

Thanks 29 - tough gig

got no room for funny in the head today

Steve said...

Eric Cole missed four games

Anonymous said...

@STeve, What are you talking about? Roberts didn't retire until 09. He never played a full season after the injury he faced but he was already ten seasons in when he got hurt. Not young like our boy. I'm sure he will recoop in time for next season lets not jump to conclusions. Quit posting negative "thoughts" that aren't backed by much new information! Ass.

bea.habs.fan said...

what can we do as fan to show how pissed off we really are?
not watch games? not buy tickets?
no way would that happen in a city like Montreal.
watch the league fuck up the punishment.
I say next time Bettman's in town we riot on his ass to get the message through

Anonymous said...

@be.a.habsfan We have to be careful with our reaction cuz we don't want players not wanting to come to play for us. If we get to insane they definitely wont want to put on the ol' CH.

Steve said...

@anon - my point is that both Cole and Robers did not have the same kind of injury that Max has. I dont want to be negative, but the NFL has lots of these type of injuries, maybe there is a player who has come back, I am not reading about any.

McPhee said...

29, I love you to death, but you've been bullied into pussy-ishness by the armada of NRA people organizing pro-gun rallies where mass shootings just took place.

My full thoughts on this when I'm not sneaking a post on the crapper at the job.

moeman said...

NO suspension.

moeman said...

http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/316297.html

Steve said...

Sure all the facts are not in, and my medical background is zilch. However IMHO it is a very solid conclusion that a broken vertebrae has ended many careers, if someone know of one that healed well enough the player got medical clearance, please please post it, I want Max to come back next year, he was a player we have waited a long long time for.

When the NHL spin machine comes out with 3 games for Apeman, I want everyone to go completely Apeshit about this, knowing there is a very good chance Max will never ever play professional sport again.

Habsfan10 said...

UN-FUCKING-BELIEVEABLE. Murphy's statement is a fucking joke. I hope Chara gets fucking demoed in the cheapest way possible his very next shift.

moeman said...

@Steve, "When the NHL spin machine comes out with 3 games for Apeman"

There's NO suspension;

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=357209

Steve said...

Fuck this shit, what does Bettman want Montreal to burn down so he can move the team to Kansas. This is worse than Richard, this is WWF crap.

Alan McDougal said...

@Steve:

They're talking about Eric Cole's '06 neck injury by Brooks Orpick. The one that broke his vertebrae. And kept him out until Game 6 of the SCF. Orpick cross-checked Cole into the boards. Cole has come back, but has not been the same player.

Here's hoping Patch can get back on the ice soon.

Steve said...

Collin Campbell must be fired. If Apeman did not play for Boston what would have happened. Now every team knows Boston has a get of of jail free card, and a clear path to the cup with help from above. They treat us like fools, I hope the fucking politicals in Quebec bring charges against Apeman, and he can never ever enter Canada again.

Melly said...

What? Nothing? Not even a token two game suspension?

Good luck with your recovery, Patches, and all the others recovering from head injuries. Take care of yourselves, because the NHL won't.

Steve said...

Alan, thanks for that hope its the same, I have been looking for NFL players who came back and have found handfuls of ones that did not but not any that did.

Steve said...

From the Globe, one time I am glad Im an asshole

"Martin was careful not to venture into a prognosis for Pacioretty, but it seems obvious his season is over - many players have recovered from similar and even worse injuries, but generally not in the three-and-a-half months between now and when the Stanley Cup is awarded."

Mr. natural said...

OMG!

HOLY PHUCK!

Young HF29 said...

OK, now I promise tomorrow's post is going to be REALLY FUCKING ANGRY

kevincrumbs said...

Wow, they can't even throw us a bone by at least fining him a couple of thousands of dollars. Where's AK's mafia buddies when you actually need them for once?

The next Bruins visit to the Bell Centre is going to be really, really ugly

bea.habs.fan said...

I can't believe there isn't even a token rap pn the knuckles.
SERIOUSLY???
FUCK YOU NHL

I wasn't going to expect anything major but not even one game does not feel right.
why cause Chara said I didn't mean it?

Anonymous said...

@29 atta boy fucking let her rip

kevincrumbs said...

Also, does Chara have a Twitter account or anything like that? I propose all Habs fans flood that thing and let him know how we feel.

inthereds said...

No suspension = One more reason to dislike/hate the current NHL brain-trust.

Steve said...

Cant someone in Montreal make a complaint to the police or the special prosecution? The fact is the NHL enjoys certain immunity from actions that would put most people in jail. The reason is there is an expecting that the NHL has its own code of laws, well that just went out the fucking window.

Chara is not allowed back in Canada this is Queen Kennedy's email Kenney.J@parl.gc.ca . I have emailed him demanding that a murderous thug like Chara be refused entry into Canada. If a few thousand people seeking this very minor remedy, it will happen.

Melly said...

No, what? I'm really still in utter disbelief.

James Wisniewski makes a lewd gesture at Sean Avery, and gets 2 games.

Chara breaks Max Pacioretty's vertabra and possibly ruins his career, and gets nothing??

I feel ill.

moeman said...

Habs fans pissed off the wrong toronto media wads and toronto boy murphy was non too pleased. If PatCHes is a leaf zfuck is gone for 5.

moeman said...

Is Bob Gainey officially on the Habs payroll? Can he be fined? Get him to say something. PatCHes is one of his diamonds in the rough trades. Someone, say, something.

Can't wait to hear the hero cheers zfuck gets from the Bs crowd at the next game.

You win bettman. Go fuck yourself.

KML said...

I'm with Melly. Utter shock. I actually thought that since the call was at noon and took a while to leak, the suspension would be a long one.

If I didn't love the Habs, I would probably just stop watching NHL hockey. A talented young player's career is quite likely over and the brutish act that led to it results in nothing.

What's more to say, really? I can't even get mad yet, this is just so unbelievable (in the most literal sense of the word).

Oh, and I actually hope Chara suffers a career-ender soon. His blame-the-victim routine is fucking appalling.

Anonymous said...

FUCK YOU NHL.

Daddy Says said...

That's fucking disgusting. How about looking at the fact that, intentional or not, the Habs now have a player out for the season (lets hope PatCHes is that fortunate) boston? Nope they get to keep their "leader". Not even a TOKEN effort to clean up this shit.
I've been distracted by this all FUCKING DAY. Its just garbage.

HE FUCKING HURT HIM. What difference does it make if it was intentional? chara admitted he was "running him out"..... He meant to put him into the boards. And all this "anywhere else on the ice BULLSHIT"? a) its still interference b)IT WAS INTO A FUCKING STANTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fuck this shit.

God Bless you PatCHes.

moeman said...

No history?

zfuck did it with a cage on, to a much smaller player, puck out of play, no penalty, just skates away, like last night. Fuck you bettman.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSVF5bZFv_w

kevincrumbs said...

The only good I see coming from this is that it pisses off the guys in the room and really helps to foster an us-against-the-world feeling. I hope we get the fucking Bruins in the playoffs this year.

Hadulf said...

Damn right Anon...

FUCK YOU NHL. FUCK YOU BETTMAN. FUCK YOU bruins. FUCK YOU, EVEN MORE, YOU FUCKING SHAVED GORILLA.

Bill 101 said...

I didn't think I could feel more sick about this. wrong again.

Anonymous said...

"Asked to define empathy, Chara responded with a series of grunts and fecal matter"

Steve said...

Fucking Betmann is a fucking thug with a short man Napoleon complex. Without Montreal the NHL would be a fucking bowling league, how can the NHL keep pouring shit down on us.

Steve said...

@Kevin great thoughts, if there is any justice Montreal will win the cup, and skate over Boston in 4 games.

Anonymous said...

Habs posted a link to have people leave a message for Patches,

http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=68349

Go ahead and blow it up and send him your positive vibes.

the Maritimer said...

Well, not much more can be said about the incident. I've read a lot of the comments here, at HIO, the Globe and Mail and a bit at TSN. The bottom line is Chara walks away, hopefully with his conscience telling him it was not worth it to destroy a young players career because of a perceived slight a couple of months ago.

I hope Max makes a full recovery, I went to church today, it being Ash Wednesday and said a prayer for him.

What now concerns me is how will Max's team mates respond. Will they go into a funk because justice was not served or will they band together and say fuck you to the NHL, it's so-called disciplinarians and the Toronto centric media that sucks up to the NHL so as not to lose access to it's "sources"?

The best revenge the Montreal Canadiens can exact is to win, plain and simple. Win the Cup, beat the Bruins on the way to another championship. Make Chara look like a fool every chance they can get.

Go get'em guys!!

moeman said...

Maritimer knows.

Thx Anon.

ti-cul said...

That is absolutely disgusting. I just want to puke and never watch hockey again. Too bad I'm addicted to the habs. But really, Fuck the NHL, Buttman the creepy gnome, colon crampie, Don Cherry who will be all giggly and happy on crotches corner. FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK.

I expect 29 to fully unleash the hate, or maybe even have 10 to do so if you can't get off with enough juice.

"a hockey play" my fucking ass.

moeman said...

Pierre Gauthier: "NHL took its decision. Not for us to express opinion publicly."

http://twitter.com/Real_ESPNLeBrun

ti-cul said...

Colon Cambell was at the game, no suspension. Coincidence?

moeman said...

"What I remember about it was the sound - it sounded like a gun: bang!" said Pacioretty's linemate Scott Gomez. "Stuff like that is tough to look at."

"It makes your guts hurt," goalie Carey Price echoed. "I can't imagine being a parent, watching your kid get hit like that."

"For all hockey parents who have kids in the sport, I think we all kind of had the same feeling, and for them you can only imagine that they were very scared," said defenceman P.K. Subban.

Boob Gainey said...

I'm not sure how to do it, but we need to turn this anger into something productive. There are people on facebook organizing a peaceful protest for March 15 I think.

Montreal fans need to make sure our disgust is there for everyone to see.

moeman said...

Proudly wear that Bruins 'C' on your jersey you classless zfuck.

McPhee said...

That fucking dickhead couldn't even keep a straight face when he said "that's not my style, to be dirty." He was smirking like the absolute jackass that he is. Roll the tape, it's true.

Notice how he didn't look back when Patch went down. Someone with no intention to injure would immediately look back and be all horrified, stand next to the guy, etc. None of that.

Chara is a cold-blooded killer. Period.

Obviously Patches won't ever play again, obviously he's lucky he can ever run again.

Habs are screwed. He was a key player and the team mojo is now minus ten million. Seriously we could miss the playoffs now.

But who cares? Not just about this year, who cares about hockey now? How do you watch a game now and go "gee, I hope they score". It seems so...ridiculous to care about the score, or the contracts, or whatever. I don't understand why or how people can bring themselves to wonder what the lines will look like now. Denial, I hope.

There is no possible debate as to whether or not that hit was intentionnal. It totally was.

That'll teach us to build a 4-0 lead or to celebrate our overtime goals.

I'm still waiting to hear definite news from that kid's health before I lose my shit for good.

Focus on his wellbeing, we'll settle the score later. We know where subhumanpieceofshit works and he's not going anywhere.

PS : Obvioulsy there was no suspension, people. If you penalize this then you admit there was guilt. If there was guilt and a kid almost died, then the appropriate sanction is measured in years of suspension, or jail. You can't say : "yeah, you sort of tried to kill him, so here's 300 hours of community work".

Please get well, Max. We love you and send you all our thoughts.

Flying Toaster said...

This NHL Suspension Flowchart is still relevant today.

moeman said...

nhl goes into full chara protect mode.

tsn goes into full blob protect mode.

mediots wanting to keep their link to their sources go into full protect mode.

PatCHes left unprotected by his league and his union.

Flying Toaster said...

I'm not sure the link worked so here's the url: http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2775/4093950458_03e4645497_o.gif

Orangeman said...

Two things offend the human spirit like nothing else:
1) Witnessing severe pain to another human;
2) Witnessing a great miscarriage of justice.

We witnessed both in less than 24 hours. This goes beyond hockey and team allegiances. Unfortunately, politics enters even the most obvious discussions.

I don't even know what to do. Despite my knee-jerk reactions and complaining here, I always believed the NHL, at heart, was legitimate. I sincerely no longer believe that. There's a difference between having borderline calls always going against you and watching one man get away with maliciously trying to seriously injure another and get a free pass. Every time I see Bertuzzi I recoil a little inside, but at least he was punished in some way.

I'm just at a loss for not only words, but actions. Does it matter that I realize what a sham this league is? Would it matter if I stopped watching? Can I send a letter to someone and not sound like a lunatic?

The worst part is that after hearing the lack of punishment I started to fantasize about getting revenge on him next game, or even seeing fans take it into their own hands. I don't want that to happen (exactly), I don't want to think that way.

He doesn't have a history so he gets off? Try that one in court. "Well, I never killed a man before yesterday Your Honour," "Case dismissed!!"

This issue also allows all the pundits to ignore the fact that they were incredibly wrong, in fact they were part of the problem leading up to this. After the previous game they were all saying how the Habs could compete against the physical boston team and that the cheap shots "warmed their hearts". How convenient they've all forgot about that, and how they can ignore the fact that the Habs had a pretty easy time with them, even while they were in shock in the 3rd.

Sorry this post is so long. I feel like I'm in a daze and I'm rambling. Get well Patches, don't worry about hockey right now. One step at a time.

Steve said...

Fuck it I am going to empty my asshole.

http://canadiens.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=68349

Anon posted this link to give good wishes to patches. Even as I write this I am tearing up. Its not just the injustice he has gotten it is the whole unfairness of everything. I do not believe that child will ever play again, remember this is the guy who stood convention on its head and said that he did not want to play in the NHL. Weeping now. Cant go on

Oleg Petrov said...

I just watched the Erik Cole neck fracture (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRMz6A6r5fs) and it's not even in the same ballpark. I'm so glad this kid is not paralyzed - career schmareer.

Apparently his mom was in the stands.

soperman said...

Apparently Chara didn't get a suspension because he "did not leave his feet". Are they phucking kidding? If you are leaving your feet at 6'9" you are going over the boards with 6" under your feet.

And Glenn "Phucking" Healy says there is no precidence for a suspension. (Primetime Sports) Does he know what a precidence is? Precidences are set. There would be no new decisions, this guy is a caveman.

Sonia said...

This reminds me of Norm MacDonald's line on SNL after the OJ Simpson verdict:
"Well, it's official: Murder is legal in the state of California

Well, now attempted murder is officially legal in the NHL. As long as you claim you didn't mean it & don't leave your feet.

Matt - ftc said...

Sonia, that was a great comment

Flying Toaster said...

What I find absolutely ludicrous is the entire hockey world is arguing about Chara's intent... Let me say this: I don't fucking care what his intent was and I think it's completely irrelevant. This is NOT the issue that should be discussed.

What happened is Chara make an irresponsible, downright DANGEROUS action and was being reckless and careless. When you are acting that way and end up committing harm unto others, you should be punished, end of discussion. By not penalizing Chara for his actions, you are sending a message throughout the league thay you can play as hard as you want and as dangerously as you want. As long as you didn't INTEND to injure someone, wether you do or not won't matter. So go ahead and hit people's heads, slam them into the boards and clothesline them. If you don't mean to injure them it's okay, we'll pardon your behavior.

That is just complete bullshit. The league could've made an example of this and have their players be more responsible for their own actions, but have failed miserably by allowing a dangerous, reckless act that could end a player's career go unpunished.

Fuck you NHL and all of the people managing it. Man up and take responsibility!

Cowboyatheart said...

I've played the game, and even as an amature I knew where those posts were. I hit people into them intentionally, hoping to hurt them.

Note that I use hurt as in pain, not hurt as in injure. I don't think I ever wanted to seriously injure someone and I don't think Chara did either. But there is no doubt in my mind he wanted him to hit that post.

lawyergirl77 said...

So... What did I miss over the past week?

moeman said...

lg, it got really hot, outdoors and indoors. Hope you enjoyed your vacay.

Hadulf said...

Reading all the comments here since yesterday. I agree with some, disagree with others but overall, the people around here are good people, reasonable people. I love this blog. I love the way we can say FUCK YOU in total respect to other teams. I love how we can lay hate on the fucking bruins with honesty. Above all, I love how we agree on one thing : it is PatCHes life we care about. Not his role as a player on our beloved Habs. Not as a guy we would've traded last year or the guy who started producing points at a great rate for the Habs. No. We care about the individual that is Max Pacioretty. Thank you all for making me believe that humanity can still care about what's right.

Get well, Max Pacioretty.

iRiRi said...

I have never witnessed anything more horrifying in hockey than I did last night. Watching Max lie there, unconscious for several minutes, I couldn`t help but shed some tears. I felt absolutely sick to my stomach and was too shaken to fall asleep.

I listened to the Team990 all day as they took calls from dozens of outraged (rightfully so) callers. Every channel is playing the incident over and over. People keep calling the cops to have Chara arrested (seriously). I`ve read tons of articles and blog posts about it. None of this changes the fact that tonight, Max is in a hospital bed and Chara is on his way to his next game.

I can't believe Max` life/career could have been cut short in just a few seconds and that one man could be responsible for it without any repercussions at all.

I can`t believe the NHL thinks Elisha Cuthbert`s feelings are more important than a player`s broken neck. Or that Wiz got two games for mimicking a blow job. This league is a fucking joke.

I can`t believe that even though the consensus, whether people thought it was a dangerous hit or not, was that, at the very least, Chara should have gotten 1-2 games, he got nothing. I am appalled by that decision.

The worst part is that, with their decision today, the NHL is basically giving others the green light to go ahead and do the same. It scares me to think that they are literally waiting for someone to die on the ice to implement stricter rules.

Here`s to a complete recovery for Patches. Get well soon.

Le Douze said...

I've refrained from commenting on this, because, really, what can words express when you see a play like that? Frankly I was relieved that Patches was alive, and elated that he apparently wasn't paralyzed. Anyone can see that he's not going to be back on the ice this year, and will unlikely ever be the same player ... if he does, it will be a miracle which I will be greatful for, but mostly for Patches' sake.

Now Chara's non-suspension, perhaps not a surprise, is still a shock, in that the NHL brass still thinks that reckless disregard for the life of another human is acceptable just because it happens on the ice in front of 21,000 paying customers.

I'm not interested in getting mad about this; the whole thing is too painful. I am interested in getting even. I don't mean seeing the gorilla beaten up in the next Habs/Broons game; that's thinking far too small and petty.

What I am thinking about is that this site has a bunch of very smart lawyers who are passionate about the game. I was wondering what remedies there are under legal or civil law for (or should I say sanctions against? guess I'm not an lawyer) an organization that creates such dangerous conditions for its employees. Obviously we're not the Crown prosectors here so we can't charge them with conspiracy to commit attempted murder, but is there anything we can do to apply legal pressure to the NHL to fix this?

Is there a lawyer in the house?

iRiRi said...

Sorry for the novel. Didn't realize it was THAT long.

Orangeman said...

Apologies if this pic has been posted already. So, is it a 'clean hit' to have your arm extended, hand in the face of your opponent while looking directly at the giant steel bar that you're crushing his head into? It was such a loud bang that it caused me to look at the screen while I was distracted by something else, but the guy right next to it (who says he didn't realize it happened) didn't even turn around?

The league has made it clear what kind of players they prefer. I'm just saddened that not even his union is protecting him.

Kate said...

I'm still raging over this. And tell me, what kind of fucking example is he as a Captain? To put it into perspective (forget the size factor, this is about character) could you even imagine Koivu or Gionta doing something like that?

iRiRi said...

"Guys are livid. They’re very pissed off."...

"A guy’s laying in a hospital bed & we’re more worried about what’s going to happen to him (than Chara decision)"

-Gomez quotes from Dave Stubbs's Twitter.

Steve said...

I have a long quiet revolution statement I have been trying to get out, but in the meantime I have to call out some enablers, some low down scared shitless hacks who must brownose everyday to Bettman and Collie.

Lets start with a Mike B, might work for a paper that rhymes with Dazett. Might have been licking Bettmans ass on a Toronto radio station today saying its hard to tell. We need a word for people like that, and Booneshit is the best I can think of at the moment.

Then like the coachroach there are all the other usual suspects, loathsome fucking pondscum left there by escaped child molesters. Gary is one, and so many others will emerge from this tipping point offbalance from all the shit on their nose, and the willnots in their nasel hair that will stay there until at least July.

moeman said...

I know some are friends of Boone but I've never liked the guy, via what he writes and says. His 'sitting on the stanchion' comment today on McCown's show was disgusting. Whenever Boone goes on a toronto-based show he turtles and is not representative of Habs fans or the Montreal feelings in general. He panders to them (buddies), licks their boots (happy to be on air) and makes a fool of himself and Habs fans by proxy. I'd go so far as to say he is below michel bergeron for integrity.

Not Geoff Molson said...

Nothing for Chara (I thought I was seeing things earlier today when I saw that on the ticker). This right after they give Gillies 10 games for something very minor in comparison.

Fuck you Bettman! Fuck you Campbell! GTFO!

Kate said...

Success is the best revenge.

Go Habs Go.

Number31 said...

OK so I'm sick of it all. I was sick when Trevor Gillies attacked Eric Tangradi for no damn reason. I'm absolutely LIVID with this one. I'm trying to gather a large group of people and organize a protest. We all go down to Toronto and protest in front of the NHL office. It's enough. If this happened in the QMJHL, Chara would have been auto-suspended indefinitely then suspended for the rest of the year and playoffs, maybe even next year. The Habs can't do anything but we, the fans, can.

Chara saying he's sorry, well to quote Hal Gill "sorry doesn't mow the lawn." What if Patchy doesn't play again? What if his fiancé has to feed him with a spoon for the rest of his life? The fact Chara isn't suspended, isn't even FINED, isn't ANYTHING is sickening and as fans of this game there's no way we can accept this anymore.

Ken Dryden predicted this would come one day. The escalation, the violence. This isn't hockey. So who's with me? I don't know when the protest will happen. This weekend is probably too quick...but the sooner the better eh. We owe Pacioretty this, because someone needs to make the League accountable.

Steve said...

Whats better than a law degree, its the one I have, yes I am a history major, about 3 years and a great LSAT short of a law degree. My mind completely free of any discipline.

Many commentators are drawing parallels between this incident and the Richard riots. There really is no comparison. Firstly Richard committed a pretty serious offence. Secondly the historical backdrop was a racist Anglo- Saxon society that held French Canadian in contempt and for good measure was fond of posting Jews not permitted signs. The perceived injustice of Richard punished for taking justified retribution was a metaphor for French Canadians to take back Quebec from the Mubarak English puppet Duplessi.

There are no obvious political overtones to the maiming of Patches. Its hard to argue there are not tribal or even familial influences on the judicial outcome. However Betman is no more hated today than yesterday, and the people of Quebec no more inclined or disinclined to take to the streets in offense.

What lingers and could be the catalyst to real change is the indignity of having blatant corporitus shoved into the face of the body politic without apology. For it is this grinding minutia of omnipresent oppression, that grates upon the soul. We get it from every direction, and we give it daily with direction. Our bullshit filters are full, our get along batteries are nearly discharged, our rage is coming, and Patches perceived martyrdom will be seen as a reference point in Montreal, around north america, people will find something else, but totems they will find.

This incident is another straw on the camels back, and the camel is faith in our leaders, and the hump our institutions.

Steve said...

@29 if you do it on a Saturday I am there.

Orangeman said...

@31: I heard somewhere today that a 'peaceful' protest is planned for the 15th. I guess that was chosen because it's the next home game. I mean, at this point I just want to hear Max is up and walking. Then I'll focus on burning effigies of various NHL people.

Steve said...

As Moeman said, where are the official Hab voices on this, can Geoff not say I have lost confidence in Betmann, can Goat not question how you can a have a judicial system when the Judges Son comes up monthly on the docket?

Matt said...

"I could not find any evidence to suggest that, beyond this being a correct call for interference, that Chara targeted the head of his opponent, left his feet or delivered the check in any other manner that could be deemed to be dangerous."

-Mike Murphy, March 9, 2011

"Matt Cooke did not jump, and did not do anything that we found illegal in his actions."

-Colin Campbell, March 10, 2010

Stare decisis at work, evidently.

WV: corsp. Chara on the 24th.

Steve said...

I meant 31 do it on a Saturday and you will have 10,000 people from Toronto alone,

moeman said...

@N31 & Steve, as much as I truly support some call to action, the NHL HQ knew by decreeing no harm done that the mediots would just move on. The fuckers at tsn spent 3 minutes on the PatCHes issue then moved onto the leaf goalie's potential sprained hand bobo. These people aren't hockey fans. Add that to their Habs' hate and the point is moot. Dirt. Swept. Carpet.

iRiRi said...

Apparently, Renaud Lavoie has spoken to Patches. His report will be on Sports30 on RDS. Patches said he saw the replay and is disgusted there was no suspension.

Also, kudos to Air Canada for threatening to rescind their NHL sponsorship over the Chara hit.

moeman said...

Nice find iRiRi, here's the article;

"SUNRISE, Fla. -- Air Canada, one of the NHL's largest financial corporate backers, is threatening to withdraw its sponsorship if the league doesn't take "immediate" and "serious" action on headshots, QMI Agency has learned.

In a strongly worded letter addressed to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Wednesday, Denis Vandal, Air Canada's director of marketing/communications, expressed concern over recent incidents of headshots and concussions.

The letter came in the wake of Tuesday night's controversial hit by Boston Bruins defenceman Zdeno Chara on Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty at the Bell Centre. Following a telephone hearing Wednesday with NHL VP Mike Murphy, there was no punishment for Chara.

"We are contacting you (Wednesday) to voice our concern over (Tuesday night's) incident involving Max Pacioretty and Zdeno Chara at the Bell Centre in Montreal," wrote Vandal. "This is following several other incidents involving career-threatening and life-threatening headshots in the NHL recently."

Vandal noted the controversial issue is becoming bad for Air Canada's brand.

"From a corporate social responsibility standpoint, it is becoming increasingly difficult to associate our brand with sports events which could lead to serious and irresponsible accidents; action must be taken by the NHL before we are encountered with a fatality.

"Unless the NHL takes immediate action with serious suspension to the players in question to curtail these life-threatening injuries, Air Canada will withdraw its sponsorship of hockey."

Not only does Air Canada own the naming rights to Toronto's Air Canada Centre, it's believed they're a major corporate sponsor behind all six Canadian teams. Air Canada's head office is also located in Montreal.

Vandal copied all six Canadian NHL governors with his letter.

"As a strong supporter and sponsor of NHL Hockey in Canada and several U.S. cities, Air Canada is very concerned with the state of hockey today," Vandal noted.

"While we support countless sports, arts and community events, we are having difficulty rationalizing our sponsorship of hockey unless the NHL takes responsibily to protect both the players and the integrity of the game."

Vandel isn't the only one concerned.

NHL GMs will meet next week in Boca Raton, Fla. to discuss headshots. They're trying to find a solution to cut down on the number of concussions and bring more respect to the game.

Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby, the NHL's poster boy, hasn't played in more than two months after suffering a concussion in the Winter Classic on Jan. 1.

A league source said several teams were upset Chara wasn't suspended. The Bruins carry a lot of weight at the league level -- owner Jeremy Jacobs is the chairman of the board.

Murphy wrote in his explanation for letting Chara off that he couldn't find sufficient evidence to call the incident intentional.

"After a thorough review of the video, I can find no basis to impose supplemental discipline. This hit resulted from a play that evolved and then happened very quickly -- with both players skating in the same direction and with Chara attempting to angle his opponent into the boards," said Murphy.

"I could not find any evidence to suggest that, beyond this being a correct call for interference, that Chara targeted the head of his opponent, left his feet or delivered the check in any other manner that could be deemed to be dangerous.

"This was a hockey play that resulted in an injury because of the player colliding with the stanchion and then the ice surface."


http://www.torontosun.com/sports/hockey/2011/03/09/17558366.html

Steve said...

No offense intended but if politicians are natural whores, Quebec politians are supernatural whores. I can no believe some pol has not latched on to this and made it their cause.

The Bloc should be eating this up. Betman splashes cold water on the New Nordiques and french learning player survives attempted murder by Slovo American hitman, protected by Anglo spawn of Clarence Campbell

Steve said...

When the revolution starts, we will fly Air Canada.

I really can not believe it, well done.

Steve said...

Okay going watch the official CBC news and see if we beat libya

Steve said...

Hit number 5 story, and byline, "was there anything wrong with that?"

LJ said...

MAxPAc sent a message, basically fuck you NHL. good for him.

moeman said...

Watching blob mackenzie read PatCHes words. blob can't keep up with his tongue. Will post details. blob almost lost it, you can feel the regret in his voice.

moeman said...

PatCHes words;

"Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty spoke to TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie from his hospital room on Wednesday evening about the injury that he suffered against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night.

"I am upset and disgusted that the league didn't think enough of (the hit) to suspend him," said Pacioretty. "I not mad for myself, I'm mad because if other players see a hit like that and think it's okay, they won't be suspended, then other players will get hurt like I got hurt."

"It's been an emotional day. I saw the video for the first time this morning. You see the hit, I've got a fractured vertebrae, I'm in hospital and I thought the league would do something, a little something. I'm not talking a big number, I don't know, one game, two games, three games...whatever, but something to show that it's not right."

"I heard (Chara) said he didn't mean to do it. I felt he did mean to do it. I would feel better if he said he made a mistake and that he was sorry for doing that, I could forgive that, but I guess he's talking about how I jumped up or something."

"I believe he was trying to guide my head into the turnbuckle. We all know where the turnbuckle is. It wasn't a head shot like a lot of head shots we see but I do feel he targeted my head into the turnbuckle."


http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=357316

moeman said...

Man, how much taller of a man (than mental midget) can PatCHes be? Those are some powerful words.

I'll reiterate that blob was flustered like never before.

iRiRi said...

Wow. Max said it best.

Oh, and I hate Blob.

McPhee said...

Patches should probably apologize, when he wakes up, for getting Chara and the fine organizations that are the nhl and the boston bruins into so much trouble.

moeman said...

BTW, mental midget = chara.

Steve said...

Very rare to hear an athlete say what he really feels. I sure hope he gets some other players not just from Montreal to say the same thing. It was no accident.

Oleg Petrov said...

Relieved that, whatever the state of MaxPax's scrambled brains after that hit, he's well enough to express himself that way. A bit encouraging.

moeman said...

Heard that PatCHes said he isn't feeling the concussion effect(s). We know it can be a long term injury but encouraging news is the best news.

Oleg Petrov said...

MaxPac says he's feeling surprisingly good re relative absence of concussion symptoms, says Mackenzie.

Oleg Petrov said...

Sorry for the quasi-identical post. Delay.

Chamby said...

And for the icing on the cake, Max Pac will be fined for slamming the league.