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The joke about the outrage... [Video evidence]
Posted 8:34 PM ET | Comments 9
If you watch the video replay you will see that his feet don't leave the ice untill there is contact. Shoulder contacts the head and then Mcammond's head hits the boards. It is also 0.6 seconds after Mcammond passes the puck, Downey also cannot see that he doesnt have the puck. Mcammons head is looking where he passed and doesn't see Downey coming. By today's official NHL rules that isn't even a penalty. (charging maybe, refs discreation). I will also guarnatee that majority of people that have seen it, at first though WHAT A HIT, then oooh mcammond isn't gettin up. I also agree that he should be suspended but 3-5 games is appropriate, unless they wanna set a new standard.
- TheTiny
Can't do more than to say that i totally agree with you here. It was a pretty "normal" check in todays NHL with abnormal consequences for both players involved. But thats it and it should be handled like that. Nobody cried out in Sens land when Alffie shot a puck at Scott Niedermayer. Could've taken Nieds head off and was more sure intent to injure thant in downeys case....
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I apologize right now before starting to write because it's my first blog post since being a member here, but there are things that are just not right.
I totally agree with everyone who said earlier on HB or somewhere else that Downie should get a suspension. I also totally agree that he had his feet in the air and that it was NOT a clean hit. I also totally agree to the fact that McAmmond was not seeing the hit coming and had no chance to protect himself in any way. I also agree that the hit Downey took before was by no means a good reason for laying such a hit on McAmmond.
BUT...
I can not agree in the opinion, that Downie is the starter of this all, such hits are all over the league and by some reason, I don't know yet, nobody made such an huge outcry before. Why? Because Koivu stood up right now? Because Jeff Carter went to the bench himself? Because Andy McDonald did play on because it was the Stanley Cup Finals? But then - what about Patrick Eaves? What about Trevor Letowski? Both carried off the ice on a stretcher just like Dean McAmmond. As well as Thomas Kaberle of the Leafs being carried off on a stretcher after being hit late and high by Cam Janssen. Sure, there was a media outrage also, but in my opinion just because it hindered the Toronto Maple Leafs extremely in their playoff push. But still there was NO suspension. This hit could've taken Kaberles head off also and he hit the boards even more vicious than yesterdays hit on McAmmond. There are even more Checks by Cam Janssen that could have made severe damage to the player he checked. Like a elbow-first-hit on Juraj Kolnik with full speed into the boards, if he would have connected with the elbow to the head of Kolnik we would not see him in the NHL anymore. We would see him in a wheelchair. Has anyone of you seen the face of Chris Drury after a Elbow to the Head? He could as well lose his life on this check or land in a wheelchair and never return. Another one is the (in)famous Sami Kapanen struggling to get to the bench after a elbow to the head hit by Darcy Tucker. It was a headshot and it was an elbow and it was full speed against the boards. Want more proof? I think thats enough, cause most of these shots are from the last season.
The thing about the whole McAmmond story is mostly media-induced. The hits are out there and if it wouldn't be in the preseason nobody would have cried out that loud about it. The comments from guys like McGrattan and others deserve to be investigated in my opinion. McGrattan stated in public he wants to end downeys career by hitting him on the ice?! What good is there to come? What does this tell us about this guy? How long 'til someone never awakes after such a incident? It's a damn sport and it's a tough sport, but the intention to injure someone that bad that he will never play this sport again, AND this and nothing else is what McGrattan stated in the interview, has no room here. Downey finished a check, which in my opinion was on the boarderline to being a clean hit, that unfortunately injured another player. I don't think Downey wanted to break his neck, he wanted to show there is no give in him and to show he is still there and to set a mark by finishing a check, just like the Ottawa tough guys finish there checks to set a sign, to intimidate. This can get wrong, and it went brutally wrong in downeys case. But still a 5game suspension should be enough, given the fact that more severe Checks were not followed by any suspension. The media cries for a suspension and the NHL will have no chance to give a reason there is no suspension. The suspension is right, even if it is 20 games. But the outcry in the public about the incident is just a brutal overreaction on a thing that is there, was there and will be there again this season. It's funny how opinions change when the thing happens to someone else. Wasn't whole Ottawa stating Neil's hit was clean? Wasn't all New Jersey stating Cam Janssens hit was clean and not late? It's just wrong, and to me it seems that the media just needs something to jump on after a long summer without hockey. And the whole media-wolves now smelled blood again and are going after Downey.
Best Regards,
Alexander "Feindbild" J.
sorry for me responding here, but it seems that i can't post comments somehow
@PhillycriersSuck
You have no idea what intent downie had. You were not there, you can't look in his head. As you can see in the videos i've posted there are many such hits in the NHL today and they are looking nearly as bad as Downeys hit. So you want to tell me every player playing the game to the limits has the intent to injure? That's just a part of the game - laying big hits on the other teams players. Also McAmmond lets the puck go about half a second before the actual check connected on him, how in hell is Downey supposed to slow down in this time? He did not charge on McAmmond and was gliding on the ice. Also there is no real evidence Downey left the ice before he hit McAmmond, the thing called physics clearly shows us he starts to fly after the impact. But that is no evidence for Downey flying BEFORE the impact. Seen the many Colby Armstron Videos? He's starting to fly after the hits also. Most of Armstrongs hits are in the same spot of the ice as was Downeys, the so-called DeathValley. I see no point in booting Downey from the NHL or him being suspended more than 5-8 games, if even. Every hockeyplayer should know that it's not a sport for sissies and that you might get injured at some point in your career from taking a check at the wrong time. Also the first two videos is posted are because in my opinion the real damage done to McAmmond was him hitting the boards with his head AFTER the check by Downie. Saku Koivu, as well as Jeff Carter hit the boards headfirst also and they stood up, unfortunately for McAmmond he didn't. Hell, there wasn't even a Minor Penalty on the Check on Carter. So compare the checks and you see that the outcry is not justified by ANY MEANS.
I sure hope that McAmmond can play hockey again, but if he can't thats it... it's his job, and it's not quite a easy job and by no means it's a job thats NOT dangerous. The Check was borderline by the rules the NHL has and in NO WAY is comparable to sticking your stick into your opponents face, hitting him from behind and driving his head into the ice surface. Checking is part of the game and there are checks that gonna miss their initial target and cause some damage. That was so, and that will be so if they don't want to change this sport into a Curling type of game.
-> Colby Armstrongs hit on Saku Koivu
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZaZzUDc83nQ).
-> Colby Armstrongs hit on Jeff Carter
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=z9RuldyPcIA).
-> Colby Armstrongs hit on Patrick Eaves
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=FFp2dlMrv0c).
-> Chris Neils hit on Andy McDonald
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=JXzx9Qicdwg).
-> Colby Armstrongs hit on T. Letowski
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=fv1l_WHqI-w).
-> Cam Janssens hit on T. Kaberle
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=WgDUNn8q4qo).
-> Cam Janssens hit on J. Kolnik
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=deZQqYCXvlo).
-> Chris Neil late hit on Chris Drury
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=2R8maaJPeFE).
-> Darcy Tuckers hit on Sami Kapanen
(http://youtube.com/watch?v=TdSZjBulFfw).
I'm sorry if the text is a bit confused... I'm from Germany and my english is not that well. Hope you understand my point anyway.
nice post man. good job.
There's an outcry about it whenever something like this happens..I remember there was an insane about of blogs about the Simon/Hollweg incident last year..If you disagree with the hit and with the previous ones, recommend for the fact that the league should send a harsh message saying - "We will not tolerate these dangerous hits." Then pair that message off with a harsh suspension
borderline clean hit? he looked like superman flying through the air. yes McAmmond was watching his pass, but his head was not down. both players are listed at 5'11". downie left his feet with the intent to injury. the reason this is different than most of those other hits you bring up is that it is retaliation. it's funny because the first 2 videos you put up as evidence of these hits, aren't headshots. yes, they both didn't see the hit coming, but actually watch the video. they got up after the hit because the hit didn't go to the head. as well as one thing both you and every other flyers fan are forgetting. with the exception of the jannsen and neil hits and armstrongs hit on letowski. the player getting hit had the puck. all head shots should be immediate suspensions, and longer suspensions and fines for repeat offenders. for people like downie who are trying to make a name for themselves and make a squad at any cost, they should be heavily fined and booted for the year.
@criers - he left his feet. there is no dispute. he was a few inches off the ground at the time of impact, but given his velocity and trajectory, as well as hitting mcammond, he flew into the air. there was no "superman" hit. he didnt drop a superfly jimmy snucka on the dude, so chill out. for mcammond, he knows better than to watch his pass. the first thing you are told when joinging a check league as a kid is to be aware of your surroundings and keep your head up. "admiration of passes gets people put on their asses." intent to injure for leaving your feet is a weak argument. and pegging this as a headshot is also a little weak. go back and watch the video a few times, i fail to see his arms coming up with "intent for a headshot". he may have been retaliating, i wont deny that at all, after taking a borderline hit just a few moments before. mcammond did have the puck previously, and hits happen when admiring your pass. there is a reasonable amount of time after dishing that you could be hit. was it within that time? im not the one to judge. but your thoughts on booting for a year are insane. stop trying to turn this into the todd bertuzzi incident.
Nice blog Feindbild. I'm begining to think everyone hates Downie. I agree he probably deserves a suspesion, a few games, but not for a season. Yeah I know it was a Flyer hitting a Senator so that means the penalty should be extra stiff, right? It's funny no one seemed to mind how he played when he was on Team Canada...
I thought the Janssen hit on Kaberle, the Armstrong hit on Letowski and the Neil hit on Drury were worse then the Downie hit. If McAmmond didn't bounce his head of the boards he probably would have gotten up.
not an intent to injury? he is the same height as mcammond. leaving your feet shows intent to go for the head, especially when you race down the ice looking for a target. he didn't have to raise his arms, getting a foot off the ice puts your shoulder at head height. what else is he gonna hit but the head when he leads with the shoulder? and as he finished the check his skate, if not both of them were above his head, what else would you call that? the only people who have called that check that caused his retaliation borderline, borderline being the main word here, are flyers fans. as for the flyer hitting a senator comment, i live in new jersey and hate the senators, so why the hell would care if it's a canadian team that the guy was on? mcammond is a vet sure to make his team, downie was not going to make the team until all of the injuries that have hit the flyers. so yes i do believe he should miss a year. he wont go head hunting again after that, now would he? as for making this a bertuzzi incident, i dont think so. this situation is nothing like that of the bertuzzi incident. if i had any say in the bertuzzi incident i would have banned him from ever setting foot on the ice, and put him up for the criminal charges that should have gone with it. nothing is worse for hockey then seeing another guy face first on the ice out cold from a dirty hit. they wont until people have to pay for what they do no matter what team they play for or what country they are from.
If you watch the video replay you will see that his feet don't leave the ice untill there is contact. Shoulder contacts the head and then Mcammond's head hits the boards. It is also 0.6 seconds after Mcammond passes the puck, Downey also cannot see that he doesnt have the puck. Mcammons head is looking where he passed and doesn't see Downey coming. By today's official NHL rules that isn't even a penalty. (charging maybe, refs discreation). I will also guarnatee that majority of people that have seen it, at first though WHAT A HIT, then oooh mcammond isn't gettin up. I also agree that he should be suspended but 3-5 games is appropriate, unless they wanna set a new standard.
really, because i thought you were responcible for your own actions. now if downie's head is in the play and not on leveling someone, he would have seen the puck move elsewhere. but since he had tunnelvision on mcammond coming from the blueline, he didn't. so i guess if you aren't paying attention to the play you can't be held responcible for your actions? if thats the case then the same excuse goes for mcammond not paying attention and getting hit is not his fault for watching the play behind him. you can't use the keep your head up line either if thats the case. and if downie cant see mcammond, mcammond wouldn't have seen him coming either. downie is responcible for his actions and he should pay for them, and pay for them dearly since threw the hit with ill-intent after being hit himself. and tiny you are forgetting one important rule that does make that hit illegal....boarding, of which throwing his head into the boards would make downie guilty of, and then throw charging on top of that. given that we are talking about ref's discreation, i do believe that with the match penalty for intent to injure he gave him, that was one of the many penalties the ref saw with that hit.