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You Make the Call: Should Voracek have received a Suspension?


hf101

You Make the Call: Should Voracek received a Game Misconduct?  

23 members have voted

  1. 1. What should the call on the ice have been?

    • A 2 min penalty to Voracek for Interference.
      10
    • The 5 min Major for Interference was the right call.
      3
    • Voracek should have been ejected fromt the game due to injury on the play.
      2
    • Vorack should get a post game fine or suspension.
      3
    • Voracek shouldn't have even received a penalty on the play.
      6


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Some are saying that Voracek delivered a nasty hit to Boychuk's head and others are saying Voracek was just bracing for the hit himself. 

 

What are your thoughts?

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  • hf101 changed the title to You Make the Call: Should Voracek have received a Game Misconduct?

Okay, I know I pissed more than one person off in here by defending Malkin for his latest hit, the one that finally drew a suspension, and for defending McDavid stating I didn't even see a penalty on the hit that led to his suspension. So here goes. Keep in mind I have no horse in the race.

  I dont even see a damn penalty here. Boychuk was barreling down, Voracek for all the toughness that his beard makes him look like is one of the softest players in the game, hardly ever a hit or a blocked shot, he was bracing himself for a potential hit. THIS IS HOCKEY NOT FREAKING BASKETBALL. Hitting has always been a part of the game and although it is being sickeningly regulated out it shouldn't be. This should have been no penalty, it was a freaking hockey play.

  I am tired of every time a player looks at another player wrong they get suspended. Boychuk was barreling down on Voracek who was away from the boards and could have destroyed him. Jake set himself and it ended different. A foul should not be called every time a player touches another. Full stop. End of sentence.

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I watched the play in real time last night and again over and over with the clip @hf101 provided above.  I really don't see a penalty.  If anything Boychuck ran into Jake.  What is Jake suppose to do.  Like @yave1964 mentioned above, Jake stood up to brace for the hit and the momentum of Boychuk forced his head into Jakes's shoulder.   Of course many Isle fans will see it differently.

image.png.cc5caff361d002a78dfb42249df43c73.png

 

There is NO intent on Jake's part here whatsoever. None..Zilch.

 

What was aggravating as hell was listening to the damn Isles announcers bemoan the point about the NHL rule and saying how the officials don't know the rule book.  It went on and on and on for the entire rest of the game.  They also were applauding the fact that Isle continued to run at Jake and how the officials let the game out of hand.  Ok, disagree with the call if you must, but move on.

 

Throw me in the category it should not be a penalty.

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6 hours ago, yave1964 said:

Okay, I know I pissed more than one person off in here by defending Malkin for his latest hit, the one that finally drew a suspension, and for defending McDavid stating I didn't even see a penalty on the hit that led to his suspension. So here goes. Keep in mind I have no horse in the race.

  I dont even see a damn penalty here. Boychuk was barreling down, Voracek for all the toughness that his beard makes him look like is one of the softest players in the game, hardly ever a hit or a blocked shot, he was bracing himself for a potential hit. THIS IS HOCKEY NOT FREAKING BASKETBALL. Hitting has always been a part of the game and although it is being sickeningly regulated out it shouldn't be. This should have been no penalty, it was a freaking hockey play.

  I am tired of every time a player looks at another player wrong they get suspended. Boychuk was barreling down on Voracek who was away from the boards and could have destroyed him. Jake set himself and it ended different. A foul should not be called every time a player touches another. Full stop. End of sentence.

 

Agree with every word.

I actually selected "2 minute penalty" in the poll, just because you could make an argument that neither had the puck and Voracek moved to his left away from the puck.  You could make an argument for it, but I still believe it to be a weak ticky-tack kind of call.  If Boychuk doesn't get hurt it's a completely unmemorable play of thousands in the game.

 

But the 5 minute major was absurd.  Since I've already gone to absurd with the 5 minute, I have no idea what word to use for a game misconduct.  And there is no such word for a suspension.

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1 hour ago, pilldoc said:

What was aggravating as hell was listening to the damn Isles announcers bemoan the point about the NHL rule and saying how the officials don't know the rule book.  It went on and on and on for the entire rest of the game.  They also were applauding the fact that Isle continued to run at Jake and how the officials let the game out of hand.  Ok, disagree with the call if you must, but move on.

 

Throw me in the category it should not be a penalty.


That's amazing, but unsurprising.

 

I was listening to the Flyers' feed.  They were completely on the opposite end of the spectrum.   Really quickly grew impatient with the Islanders being upset about virtually nothing.   And it really was virtually nothing.

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I would not be surprised if he gets a game after the fact because of the head contact you see in slow motion. Do I think he deserves it, no, but he is a Flyer so it will probably happen. Boychuk had been taking liberties with players all night so when Jake saw a chance to return the favor  he did. Kind of like the hit Patrick did the other night after he got boarded. I don't think he intended the head shot at all but he certainly meant to tune him up like we have often seen Giroux do during the course of a game.

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16 minutes ago, flyerrod said:

I would not be surprised if he gets a game after the fact because of the head contact you see in slow motion. Do I think he deserves it, no, but he is a Flyer so it will probably happen. Boychuk had been taking liberties with players all night so when Jake saw a chance to return the favor  he did. Kind of like the hit Patrick did the other night after he got boarded. I don't think he intended the head shot at all but he certainly meant to tune him up like we have often seen Giroux do during the course of a game.

 

For sure now...

 

 

...they should be able to beat the Sens without him.

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I looked over the video when they showed it on TV...rewound it on my DVR.
Then looked at it again here on this thread. A few times.
This is what I saw here:

Voracek interference on Boychuk.
I voted 2 min penalty because Jake really made NO attempt to play the puck, but rather, saw Boychuk coming in full steam, knew HE might get splattered (he shouldn't have had to worry about that because he didn't have the puck, but he wasn't going to take that chance, right?), and not only braced himself, but took it just a step further and decided to do the ol "reverse elbow/hit" thing I've seen MANY players in the NHL do (Mikko Koivu in Minnesota was known for that...a reverse shoulder on a would be checker)….the difference of course being those players HAD the puck then did the reverse hit....Voracek did not.

 

Now, here's the thing, and I know some have said it, but I agree with this:
Had Johnny Boychuk been simply knocked down to the ice, perhaps the refs DO just call 2-min interference...or even, nothing at all because the puck was going towards Jake, but wasn't quite there yet.

To me, the ONLY reason this is a big deal is because Boychuk was knocked silly, and yes, while the point of contact was the head, I find it hard to believe that even if Voracek intended to reverse hit Johnny before Johnny hit him, that he could so accurately target the head as the principal point of contact.

If I am Jake, and I decided, "Hey, I'm gonna hit this guy before he hits me", then do the reverse hit, I am figuring, my back, backside, and yes, maybe even part of my arm, is going to make contact with the WHOLE of Boychuk's body.
But because Johnny was coming in at a gazillion miles per hour AND was real low to the ice doing it, his head paid the price....though no one can convince me that Voracek PURPOSELY targeted his head.

Now, the league may look at this and say, "Well, it doesn't matter because the point of contact was the head" and they wouldn't be wrong, but dammit, there really has to be room for circumstances in game situations.
 

If Voracek had been facing Boychuk, then decided to initiate the hit before Boychuk initiated his AND THEN Johnny's head was hit, one could argue Voracek saw the guy in front of him, braced himself, made contact, and made the head the principal point.
But with his back to him? No freakin way. Sorry.

I don't dispute Voracek fully intended to make contact..... that was the freakin idea...self preservation! Boychuk is a big dude, coming in at MACH speed....Jake would have been an idiot to just trust Johnny wasn't going to knock him into and through the boards!
But with Jake's back to Boychuk, I don't buy that using his ninja skills, he could have targeted the head so perfectly.

It was just an unfortunate result of a fast moving play.

2-min interference...ABSOLUTELY! Because Jake still didn't have the puck and for all he knew Johnny wasn't going to hit him, but rather, tried to play the puck. Jake hits him first before any puck touching could occur by any player (again, Voracek can't really take the chance no contact with him will be made)….but the idea was hit Boychuk and fend him off (even a knockdown could have been premeditated), but I don't see Jake going, "I'm going to hit this bastard right in the head and take away his ability to make a living".


Sorry...don't buy that....Voracek may not always be the brightest bulb in the tree, but I don't figure him for being a dirty rat player like that.

If the league wants to fine Voracek for "carelessness in their eyes" or simply because, like an errant stick, Jake is responsible for where his body parts end up with relation to other people's noggins (intentional or not), ok, then so be it.

But no more than 2-min was warranted on the ice and NO suspensions should be taking place, IMO, so that hearing better be more about a fine than a suspension.
And the fine ONLY because the league has to be consistent on head hits....but INTENT (of which I don't believe Jake had) to injure has to be taken into account. The league has taken that into account before...now would be a good time to do so as well.

Now, later on, or next year, or whenever.....if Jake is on the same ice sheet with the Islanders, and they want to take retribution, that is another thing entirely. Players have their own code of justice, for better or worse, and they will deal with things their own way on the ice.....Voracek would HAVE to have his head on a swivel. Just the way it is...and I think he knows that.

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I'm in shock.   Ghost is the one passing the puck to an awaiting Voracek.   How the hell is it Boychuk's right of way to the puck?  Two games for being in a defensive position.   Just Wrong NHL, Just Wrong.

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2-gamer.

Incorrect by the league, IMO.

Seems more like a Radko type punishment.

Crazy thing is, when Voracek gets back, he STILL will need to watch himself on the ice....he might even have to drop the gloves....maybe against Scott Mayfield...Matt Martin...or some such goon.

If all things were right in the world, maybe Voracek and Boychuk could just drop them...everyone else mind their business.

But judging by this league ruling, things won't necessarily be right in the world.

Man. Slowly but surely, the NHL is taking physicality out of games.

I already am not too fond of the NFL (and why I remain a mostly casual fan who could take or leave most games) due to the silly rulings about hits and physicality on a...……..wait for it...…...PHYSICAL GAME.
The NHL seems to be going down that same road, sadly.

I get the need for player protection and getting rid of Cro-Magnon, knuckle dragging players in the NHL, but if a player can't attempt to defend himself with no ill intent, then what are we left with?

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Based on the Ref's call, yes Jake should have been ejected.  Based on the eye test, that was 2 mins at the most.

 

Typical of the league to try and claim significant head contact.  Then give the same suspension as other players receive picking the head.

 

https://www.nhl.com/news/flyers-forward-jakub-voracek-suspended-two-games/c-305658356

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This is a stupid ruling.

In the poll I put 2-minute interference penalty because, if one looks at the rule book that play matches the definition.

However, I didn't think it was a penalty, real-time it seemed like Boychuck was lining up for a big check.  I certainly don't think Voracek should be suspended for any games.

I really don't understand what criteria the league uses to determine what is a suspendable offence.  It feels capricious to me. 

Bad ruling. 

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  • hf101 changed the title to You Make the Call: Should Voracek have received a Suspension?

Suspension should not come as a surprise to any Flyer fan. When I saw the head contact(unintentional) , I knew he was going to be made an example of. Absolutely ridiculous. For the record I figured it would have been only a fine since it was not intentional but there I go thinking again. They are called DOPeS for a reason.......🙄

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22 hours ago, hf101 said:

What are your thoughts?

 

  • Two minutes for interference... and even that's dubious. May not call anything at all on this one because the puck was there.  
  • No fine.
  • No suspension.
  • That's all.

The player ran into his back lol. How is that "targeting the head" lol?

 

This is why I wrote that thread about hitting in hockey and what happened to it.  👨‍⚖️

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No way this is a suspension. Can you really "target" the head while looking the other way? Boychuk puts his head in harm's way. That's on him.

 

It is interference, though. And the five minute call is penalizing the result not the play.

 

Two minutes. Period.

 

Two games is absurd.

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this is going to go down as the biggest joke in the national hockey league.

I don't know why the board of player safety continues to shame itself like this.

 

The fact of the matter is, this is ALL about Boychuck (and frankly Trotz too) being embarrassed by the game on Saturday.

 

Has anyone seriously asked themselves what in the H.E. double hockey sticks Boychuck thought he was doing in this moment?  Honestly, if you told me he blacked out on his skates before he got to Voracek I'd believe you.  

 

The fact of the matter is, if Voracek hadn't stiffened his back (and that is LITERALLY all he did) to brace for a check from Boychuck, at BEST Boychuck would have flung himself awkwardly into the boards at full speed and at worst, he would have laid out Voracek with a hit that would have deserved a 20 game suspension.

 

Why does no one who thinks this was dirty ask themselves why a player with not history of such antics would suddenly, on a nothing play in a game his team had in hand would initiate what you seem to perceive as such a dangerous contact?

 

Long and short of it is, the Islanders lobbied, and they got what they wanted to punish the Flyers for kicking their butts twice in their own building.  That's ALL THIS IS and frankly it's effing pathetic on the part of the Islanders and the league.

 

Every single fan of NHL hockey should be ashamed right now.  This is the saddest display of trying to appease a whiney POS I've ever seen.  

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