Marked For Death

I think the title is pretty fitting, don't you readers? People were joking about Bill Guerin's use of "Out For Justice," as a slogan for the team going forward in the playoffs. Many joked that if the Penguins lost Game 2 (in their wild over analysis of the Senators Game 1 win), that the Penguins should change it to "Under Siege," or "Marked For Death." After Game 2, I think "Marked for Death," needs to remain, if only for Andy Sutton:



Disgusting hit. I don't care what anyone else says, this is what the NHL is trying to get out of the league. Head shot to an unsuspecting player, this is what this hit is, this is what the NHL has been bitching about. Yet, it happens, and nothing comes from it? The NHL discipline is an absolute joke, and the defenses for Sutton are even bigger jokes.

My favorite first: that Sutton is just a tall dude and Leopold was bent over. Absolutely ridiculous. Apparently, Zdeno Chara should never be penalized because he's too tall, or Hal Gill for that matter. It is irrelevant that Andy Sutton is 6'6". Sutton, like any other athlete, has complete control over his body, where it moves, where he puts it, everything. He's not some chubby jackass writing a blog about dudes fighting, let's be serious here. Sutton hit Leopold in the head because that's what he targeted, not because he's too tall to hit anything else.

The other major defense for Sutton is that Leopold should have somehow seen the hit coming. Since Andy Sutton didn't technically come from directly behind Leopold, it isn't a blindside hit? What a crock of shit. Sutton comes laterally and up to connect with Leopold from the side. To believe that the scope of a human's vision is somehow 180 degrees and he can see EVERYTHING in front of him is absolutely ridiculous. It is not a north-south hit like Andrew Ladd laid on Matt D'Agostini earlier this season, it is a hit from the side on a player who never saw it coming. Furthermore, Leopold has another player in between him and Sutton's hit. It reminds me of Darius Kasparaitis' hit on Eric Lindros in the long years gone. As a quick aside, happy trails to the Penguin legend who announced his retirement this week.



The only difference between these hits? Kasparaitis hits body on body and has no intention of going after Lindros' head. Shoulder to chest, all the way. THAT is a good hockey hit, not what Sutton did to Leopold.

The response by the Penguins was great. Immediately players are getting in Sutton's face and the end of the period was one of the greatest showings of badassery I have ever seen by Mikey Rupp and Mad Max Talbot, who is playing his best hockey of the season, right when we need it most.



Hilarious. I don't even care that it ends up being Max Talbot that fights Zack Smith. Rupp is doing what he was. Shoving a dude through the zamboni doors is probably the funniest thing I have seen since Jamie Langenbrunner chasing Chris Kunitz through the players benches. Rupp is after bigger fish than Zack Smith, who wouldn't even be playing if it wasn't for half of Ottawa being injured. Rupp does this through out the game, throwing Smith and Justin Winchester about and then not caring when they get up and try to get in his face. What are these clowns going to do to Mike Rupp, anyway? If Rupp is going to fight, it's got to be against Andy Sutton. Maxime Talbot stepping up in a big way, throwing them at the end of the period. You throw 'em at the end of the period, you know there's something that needs to be responded to because it rarely happens.



The other outcome scares me a lot more. In not punishing Sutton the league has opened the door for more head shots in this "gray" area. When Jason Spezza is laying at center ice, not moving, after Matt Cooke takes his head off, you won't find me crying about it. In fact, my reaction will probably be more akin to this:



The worst part about all of this? The NHL can stop this, but they'd rather continue to be a Garage League. There needs to be NO gray area. NO hits where the head is the primary point of impact. The NFL took away leading with the crown of your helmet to hit another place in the head. The follow through can hit the helmet as long as that isn't the primary point of contact. This can be the same in hockey.

Will it make the league a "pussy" league? Well, ask Eric Lindros how hard hits are when they aren't to the head...