#1

Posted by Gustafsson, December 3, 2006 6:15 AM

The video of AO's hit on Briere is already on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lnw3bou2NA

I'll add it to the knee-jerks.

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#2

Posted by TJ, December 3, 2006 6:40 AM

jeeze the comments on youtube are pretty funny.

Yea OV's hit was bad, but lets look at the facts. Briere played the rest of the game, if OV had realy hit him hard you think he would have been playing the rest of the game?

Briere should pay attention, just cause you going for a line change doesnt mean your off limits(even from hit from behind).

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#3

Posted by Chris, December 3, 2006 12:31 PM

I think Briere embelished the hit a little. He was fine. I don't think Ovie deserved the game misconduct but definitely the major.

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#4

Posted by Empty Maybe, December 3, 2006 12:41 PM

Of note is that Breire played two minutes or so over his usual ice-time last night.

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#5

Posted by Victor, December 3, 2006 2:31 PM

EM, if Ovie is suspended, I think there should be a peep from you. Maybe not a major protest, but I think a suspension is uncalled for because Briere apparently wasn't injured--as opposed to Zednik, who was.

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#6

Posted by atnight, December 3, 2006 5:24 PM

The use of the word "dirty" here in the blog is ill-advised. It's a hockey cliché, and implies malicious intent. It's clear Ovechkin had no malicious intent other than to finish his check, yet his timing was also 'ill-advised'. The NHL rules state both players have a responsibility in those types of situations. I observed from the game and watching the replay that both players were going through the motions of the game and instead should have been more self-aware. Ovechkin was finished his check on auto-pilot, and it just so happens that Briere decided to finish his shift by playing the puck. Both acts can lead to disaster, and they did. The onus of the blunder weighs most heavily on Ovechkin's shoulders as dealing the late hit, but Briere simply must exercise more responsibility for his own safety, if anything. If you are going to play the puck, it's a mistake to then relax and ignore the rest of the ice, even when you're ending your shift.

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#7

Posted by OrderedChaos, December 3, 2006 11:00 PM

I agree that Briere is partly to blame, but Ovechkin's hit was definitely dangerous not only to Briere but to himself. As Buffalo's coach said, imagine the Caps' reaction if the same hit were done TO Ovi. Ovi has enough of a target on his back already; dishing out hits from behind will only make opponents target him even more. Clean, hard hits are good, but the last thing the Caps need is someone head-hunting Ovi for revenge.

That said, a suspension would be an excessive reaction by the league. Ovi has no history of dirty play, just high-energy play. Ovi made a bad split-second decision and the game misconduct is, IMO, sufficient punishment. Suspending him would be overkill.

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#8

Posted by OrderedChaos, December 3, 2006 11:38 PM

Per TSN, it looks like Ovechkin will NOT be suspended.
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Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals can breathe a sigh of relief, as it appears the star forward will be not attend any hearings nor face a suspension for his hit on Buffalo's Daniel Briere on Saturday night.
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=187011&hubname=nhl

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#9

Posted by exwhaler, December 4, 2006 7:08 PM

Just a quick point--in the replay, a total of 2 seconds elapsed in the slo-mo replay between the time Briere released the puck and Ovechkin hit him. In real time, that's a split second decision that Ovy makes the absolutely wrong choice. It was a bad hit in the wrong place, and Ovechkin got what he deserved in the game. Also comparing this to what happened Atlanta (where Sutton left his feet, led with his elbow, and tried to take Green's head off) is a bit of a stretch. I can understand the Sabres' anger in this--boarding the captain in front of their bench? Smooth, Alex--but Ovechkin had no intent to injure.

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