Comments after Brad Marchand’s goal on Mike Matheson on Tuesday night included: “Marchand should be suspended for this shot to Matheson’s head. The head was the main point of contact and the contact was avoidable (rule 48). But he will simply be fined.”
Another read: “Marchand should be banned for that. Pure headshot.” Someone else wrote: “This should take Marchand out of the Winter Classic, right?” Another wrote: “Sharp elbow to the chin from Marchand to Matheson. Stupid, stupid play from the veteran. Habs for the power play.”
A lot of that happened when Marchand attacked Matheson and delivered what many thought would be a suspendable hit.
The reaction on Wednesday has changed, but not necessarily in a good way. After learning that Marchand would not be heard in any way, the cries of injustice became even more prominent.
The news came Wednesday morning from Elliotte Friedman: “No hearing for Brad Marchand on OT penalty for roughing Mike Matheson. I admit I’m surprised, I thought there would be contact to the head.” He tried to explain why he thought the NHL DoPS was failing, but fans didn’t necessarily buy it.
“My guesses as to why it won’t be a suspension: *NHL thought it was a penalty on the ice, that’s all. *Marchand elbow low and tucked; Matheson low against the ice.”
The reactions after the Friedman update
Fans are having a great day with this.
Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette wrote“George ‘The Violent Gentleman’ Parros had no problem with Brad Marchand’s intentional elbow to the head of #Habs Mike Matheson. Just a ‘hockey game’.”
“How could anyone possibly be surprised that we won’t punish a Florida Panther? If anything, Matheson should be suspended for putting his head in a place that could injure Marchand’s elbow.”
“I can’t let him miss the Winter Classic. If this were in November, he would be suspended. What a competition.”
“Surprised? We should be surprised if they call a penalty now. The fourth time in less than two seasons a Panthers player deliberately hit a player in the head without any suspension. The first three were only on Hagel.”
“My suspicion. *NHL had no intention of suspending one of the most marketable names for their most marketable regular season event.”
It has drawn a lot of attention that this was Marchand, the Panthers, right around the Winter Classic, and the thought that other factors contributed to this decision. Before Tuesday’s match, Marchand was the man of the hour. He arrived in a velvet jacket, a gift from Panthers assistant GM Gregory Campbell. He also received a gold hockey stick to commemorate his 1,000-point milestone.
One user wrote, “Honestly, that was clearly a suspendable play, and you know I’m not the kind of person who cries wolf every time a Habs player gets hit. Plus, it would be strangely poetic and absolutely perfect if Marchand was suspended right after he was celebrated for reaching 1,000 points.”
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