NHL: Number Of Dirty Plays Is On The Rise

Hockey is a contact sport and a very emotional game.

Sometimes it leads to fight scenes that could be taken right out of the movie Slap Shot!

I got to say that I was shocked to see that Mike Richards of the Philadelphia Flyers will not be suspended for his devastating hit on David Booth of the Florida Panthers.

I was floored to hear the comments of some of our hockey personality like Nick Kypreos on Rogers Sportsnet who was saying it was a clean hit.

What a joke.

So now hits to the head are legal?

I would like to remind everyone that the first goal of a hit in the game of hockey is to remove a player from the posession of the puck.

That hit on Booth was "Illegal" to the highest point.

First of all Booth did not have the puck.

Second of all it was a hit to the head!

I thought the NHL had all the great intentions to be make hits to the head something that would not be tolerated?

Once again this league is proving that it is managed like a garage league.

David Booth is not Alexander Ovechkin or sidney Crosby and that is true.

What if one of these two had been hit like that?

I assure you that Richards would have been suspended and I would not have writen this article.

The league is dropping the ball once again and it is not a shocker.

Now if you look back at the last weekend there has been a large number of dirty plays that have resulted in injuries.

Why is this happening more?

I see on the ice the same kind of things that are happening with the NHLPA.

Total lack of direction and respect among players.

Some of you will say that the hit on Booth was legal and that it was spectacular!

Spectacular, maybe but have you ever been hit like that before?

I have been hit like that, I have had concussions and because of that I can tell you that as spectacular as it seems, it is also disturbing for the one who receives it.

Post concussion syndromes and lack of confidence and being scared when you get on the ice are ill effect that most people don't understand.

Ninety percent ofthe hits given in NHL games should be penalized because they are not legal.

Here is the definition of body checking:

"Using the body to knock an opponent against the boards or to the ice. This is often referred to as simply checking or hitting, and is only permitted on an opponent with possession of the puck.

"Body checking can be penalized when performed recklessly. Charging, hitting from behind, and boarding are examples of illegal hits, due to their dangerous nature and increased likelihood of causing serious injury.

"In women's hockey, any body checking is a penalty, and is also usually not allowed in amateur leagues and leagues with young children. Some intramural university leagues do not permit body checking, in order to avoid injury and incidents of fighting.

'Leaning' against opponents is an alternative to body checking but, if abused, may be penalized as interference" (source is wikipedia: checking ice hockey)"

So now you can see that I am right!

Do me a favor, next time you see someone getting "creamed" please read again this definition and see if that hit was legal or not.

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