THN.com Blog: What's next, eliminate hitting?
Ian Laperriere's hit knocked Nicklas Lidstrom out of the game. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)
Brian Costello
2008-02-24 14:17:51
It didn’t occur to me that anyone would find fault with the Ian Laperriere hit on Nicklas Lidstrom until a colleague sent me a video feed of the incident with the subject line: Foul or fair?
The shoulder-to-shoulder collision looked, to me, so clean and so, well, hockey, I just assumed the colleague was inviting me to lunch. Foul (chicken, I suppose) or fair (food fair at the mall perhaps?).
I accepted, but no lunch was forthcoming. He was suggesting perhaps the hit was dirty. Not committing to it, but throwing the topic up for discussion.
I scoffed at the idea any hockey fan would have a problem with it because, let’s face it, hockey is a contact sport. On this play Feb. 18, Colorado’s Laperriere and Detroit’s Lidstrom were approaching a loose puck at a 90-degree angle. Both players saw each other, bent their legs, lowered their shoulders and collided.
Lidstrom looked to angle away at the last instant and took the brunt of the impact. Laperriere’s momentum carried Lidstrom into the boards where he was visibly shaken up and left the game with an injured knee. No penalty. No suspension. No reason for it.
Fabulous hit I thought. Laperriere didn’t leave his feet or get too low to take out Lidstrom’s knees or go in with a leading elbow. The fact Laperriere’s elbow then extended out from his body is simply a result of the undeniable laws of physics. The bodies bouncing off one another was the reaction to an action, with the arm in the middle acting as the fulcrum.
The fact one staffer in the office called it dirty, vicious and worthy of suspension is, to me, appalling.
I don’t buy his argument that this was a headshot and the league should do everything in its power to deal with headshots. Nor do I agree that a player the caliber of Lidstrom should have to worry about this headhunting when he’s trying to play a skill game.
Had Laperriere circled rather than hit or tried to poke check one of the game’s craftiest players, I’d expect him to be reprimanded by coach Joel Quenneville during the next stoppage.
Naturally, Laperriere had to defend himself against the nearest tough guy, Detroit’s Aaron Downey, which unfortunately has to happen under hockey’s unwritten code.
But Laperriere shouldn’t have to defend himself against overly sensitive fans or media who clearly have some serious issues with this wonderful game.
Related Links
Brian Costello is The Hockey News’s senior special editions editor and a regular contributor to THN.com. You can read his Top 10 list on Wednesdays and his blog each weekend.
For more great profiles, news and views from the world of hockey, Subscribe to The Hockey News magazine.
From now until the trade deadline (Feb. 26) The Hockey News is having a subscription sale. Click HERE to get $10 off our regular subscription price.
hockeynerd (Posted 2008-02-29 12:53:56)
The NHL claims to be promoting players like Crosby, but the actual fact is that players like Bertuzzi and McCarty get the press. Brodeur or Luongo can have a great game, Joe Thornton can do something nearly physically impossible, but the ink is spend on skate blade blood, fistfights, and injuries.
I call it "the enforcement of mediocrity" because if you're too good, you get hit. Stats nerds like myself are starting to pay attention to the PIMs drawn stat. I'd like to see this stat: who gets hit the most in the NHL? I bet it would be all of those franchise players -- including the goalies.
James (Posted 2008-02-25 17:47:15)
"The fact Laperriere’s elbow then extended out from his body is simply a result of the undeniable laws of physics. The bodies bouncing off one another was the reaction to an action, with the arm in the middle acting as the fulcrum."
I sincerely hope you never become a physics professor. Please, stick to hockey.
Tom M (Posted 2008-02-25 16:14:35)
what a joke. i wonder where all theese nay sayers would be if it was Golden Boy Crosby that was hit.... Lapierre would be lynched. and this crap about , 'well, his elbow came up in the follow thru.." if is a player is always responsible for his stick, i.e. follow thru, than why no this elbows, knees, etc. pretty lame excuse, in my mind. the hit was not dirty, but the elbow at the end should of been a two minute call. nothing else, as Lidstrom, and the rest of the Wings have said. i remember when the Great One was in Edmonton and Dave Semeko (sp??, sorry), was his 'protector'. "what a great guy" was the general concept. but Downey is dirty for protecting Nick. if Nick was a 'good Canadian Boy', as Don Cherry would say, a lot of people would be calling a different tune,..
oh, and are you going to say the butt end to Filppula face in th e 3rd period of the same game not a dirty hit, or 'he was just following thru....
the refereeing , imho, for all games, is way too inconsistent. get it right guys!!
Randy (Posted 2008-02-25 15:37:52)
The was intended to be legal, but the follow through made it illegal. With the way the NHL games are being called, it should have been a penalty. There are far too many head shots in hockey, and this is another example. I do not ever remember being taught to hit with my arms like this hit was. You are taught to check with your shoulder.
John Durnell (Posted 2008-02-25 15:02:59)
I am a wings fan from a suburb of Detroit. Lidstrom is one of my favorit players. The hit was not even close to being dirty, or worthy of a penalty. As for the assertion that Laperriere shouldn't have to defend himself is laughable. Lidstrom isn't a physical player, and is one of the top 10 players in the world. Anyone who takes a run at him, clean or dirty, is going to have to pay the price. It has always, and will always be that way. Take a run at Ovechkin, or Crosby and see what happens. Without accountability, Hits will become dirty alot more often. This hit however, wasn't dirty.
Josh (Posted 2008-02-25 14:45:04)
I've yet to encounter anyone who has found this hit to be dirty. It was a nice hard finishing check, and Lidstrom just happened to get injured. If he gets up and hops back into the play, nobody cares, but the fact that he is hurt somehow changes the complexion of the hit.
Janet (Posted 2008-02-25 14:01:24)
Clean hit....debateable, a bruise on Lidstrom's chin from Laparierre's elbow would say it wasn't so clean, but definately not the dirtiest hit going. A penalty probably could of been called for an elbow, but definately not a suspension worthy hit.
Jason (Posted 2008-02-25 13:25:10)
I'm an avid hockey player and have played hockey for many years but to call that body check a "clean" check is very questionable. When I did play contact many moons ago (I'm 33, lol!) of course we were taught to come in with the shoulder low and stand up based on contact. You can clearly see that the forearm/elbow came in contact with the chest and of course as you stand up, you're elbow's going to come up as well. You can see Laperierre's effort to push off with his arm into the boards as well. I see more and more of this in the NHL as of recently and am frustrated to see a lot of these so called "BODY" checks into "FOREARM" checks. Collide with the shoulder and not with the forearm/elbow.
A second note, a penalty should have definitely been called based on interferance. I was watching the game and didn't even see Lindstrom even coming close to coming in contact with the puck. I can't speak for Laperriere but I'm sure his intent wasn't definitely to come in contact with the puck!
Lindsay (Posted 2008-02-25 11:34:40)
It was a clean hit . The fact it was on a "notable"player and caused
injury made it more prominent . Laparierre is not a cheap shot artist
but a hard nosed player , and fights his battles rather than backing down
and hiding on his bench.
Marcus Eriksson (Posted 2008-02-25 10:35:04)
Hi Briana,
sorry if my english is a bit crappy.
Of course the hit was clean, no doubt about it, the big argument is that, players like, Lidstrom,Rafalski,Sidney Crosby,Evgeni Malkin, and even Gretzky when he was active, wounderfull playmakers and goalscorers, shouldnt have to worry about getting hurt out on the ice.
Of course Ian did the right thing, he would probably be benched if he didnt hit Lidstrom, but players witch i just namned should be met, during a situation like this with more respect, thats the big issue, thats why Red Wings reacted the way they did....Nothing else, it wasent beacuse teh hit was uggly, beacuse it wasnt. But everyone knows, from div 4 in Sweden to the Elitserien(top division in sweden) if you make a big,heavy hit (eaven if its clean) on one of the other teams top players, you have to watch your back, its as simple as that, Ian knew this and hit Lidstrom as hard as he can anyway, he showed currage and heart....and he didnt complain when he got pounded afterwards.
john fox (Posted 2008-02-25 09:38:17)
the hit was clean, unless a flyer hit'em then it would have been deemed a dirty hit just ask ken campbell
Mike (Posted 2008-02-25 09:25:47)
The hit was clean until he got his elbow up. Lidstrom was ready for the hit and would have been fine until Laperierre got his elbows up and Lidstrom's head hit the glass which dazed him and forced his legs to go out. No suspension necessary. Laperierre had to answer to Aaron Downey twice. That's the beauty of the NHL is that the game is policed by the players.
Jerry (Posted 2008-02-25 07:23:26)
Why is this being discussed, because it's Detroit. This was far less dirty than the pathetic cheap shot to the head put on Matt Cullen by the Rangers. Please, this discussion is nonsense! The only thing bad about this hit, Lidstrom needed his diaper changed.
Mike Braun (Posted 2008-02-25 05:55:23)
I was watching that game live...... If you think that was a dirty hit, then the only answer is to put dresses on the players. Old time NHLers must cringe at what has happened to the game, where you can't even deliver a legal hit without all the thugs seeking retribution. It used to be you returned the favor, a good hit for a good hit.
Clean, clean, clean.
Taylor Ferguson (Posted 2008-02-25 04:50:34)
I thought Laperrierres hit was as clean as they come, Lidstrom and I think this gets overlooked in the Norris voting is that he is soft. He is great though it that was Pronger no one would say anything. Anyways that hit was clean but Laperrierres hit on Downey later in the game should have been suspension worthy.
Joe W (Posted 2008-02-25 02:22:06)
That's about as clean as it gets. (really).
just cause it's a good player that got rocked, does'nt mean it's a dirty hit.
and the city of Detroit does'nt Suck.
Richard (Posted 2008-02-24 23:44:22)
Well, Lidstrom hadn't just gotten rid of the puck..he hadn't touched it yet. And judging from the video, Laperriere couldn't care less where the puck was--his head didn't even glance towards it. It's an interference call.
Mark (Posted 2008-02-24 22:32:42)
It doesnt matter that he didnt have the puck when he got hit, a player can follow through and check somebody if the guy just got rid of it. Its called finishing a hit and thats good hockey.
Mike (Posted 2008-02-24 21:49:40)
If by clean you mean that Laperriere hit Lidstrom when he didn't have the puck, sure. Really, you should be able to hit anyone you make eye-contact with, no matter where the puck is...heck, just take the puck off the ice, we don't need it.
ronnie (Posted 2008-02-24 21:48:30)
this game is getting so close to basketball it isn't funny.touch someone its a foul! leave the damm game alone.it's getting so hard to watch a game today.
bill (Posted 2008-02-24 21:14:26)
it was a clean hit. theres to much wining in the league now. everytime a star player gets hit someone calls him a dirty player. too many sissys in the game like chelois and modano.
James Finney (Posted 2008-02-24 18:38:33)
Matt, following through with an elbow is not a penalty, its finishing a check. Laperriere did not lead with the elbow and therefore did not elbow him.
Matt (Posted 2008-02-24 17:09:21)
Just to let you all know, the Detroit players are saying that until the elbow came up, it looked good. I'm with them. I think Laperriere gets 2 minutes for an elbow, maybe. Nothing more. No suspension, no other punishment.
Namesinvain (Posted 2008-02-24 16:22:53)
I Completely agree that this was a good clean hit. I think it is completely nonsense that some players are to have immunity towards certain hits. When you're on the ice everyone is fair game to a CLEAN HIT. You give star players like that too much respect they will embarrass the opposing team on the scoreboard. The point for a team is to win, not
"oh let's give the star player on the other team some room and respect so we can watch him beat us"
and that's what they did with Gretzky. Gave him all the room in the world when he was on the ice. and he embarrassed opponents.
Nick Lidstrom HIMSELF said it was not a dirty hit. Go figure.
Joe Willix (Posted 2008-02-24 16:05:12)
The game's changed so much in 15 years who could possibly tell the difference anymore. 15 years ago you didn't have guys getting creamed into the boards as much as you do now. 15 years ago we had highlight reels full of open ice hits and now they're so rare it's a joke to refer to a player as an "open ice hitter." (If Eric Lindros came into the league now he'd have a Chelios-length career.) The Lidstrom hit was a good hockey hit, but I think the geezers are right about the lack of respect in the league. Unfortunately, it seems like the less-talented guys show the least respect but think that's how they're going to stick around in our watered down game. Kevin Kaminksi was a joke 15 years ago...now he'd be captain of the Caps. Or maybe I'm just getting old.
Ken (Posted 2008-02-24 15:32:46)
I don't think that the hit was worthy of a suspension, but I wouldn't call this a clean hit; no Laperriere didn't leave his feet, no he didn't use an elbow...but he also didn't even look at the puck and just hit Lidstrom when he didn't have possession of the puck either, aka interference.
Advertisement
Which team will win the Atlantic Division?
"Our give-a-crap level was like at zero."
- Atlanta head coach John Anderson on Sunday's 4-1 loss to division rival Tampa Bay.
Our Partners
The Hockey News Corporation. All Rights Reserved © 2008 Transcontinental
Standards: XHTML 1.0 STRICT + CSS 2. V 1.5 17.09.2008
