'Your papers, please' must never be heard in America
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
The fear is gone. The doubt too for that matter. Ditto the hesitation.
The NHL suspended Buffalo's Patrick Kaleta for five games Monday, its stiffest punishment of the season.
Erskine expressed remorse Monday about giving Philadelphia Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds a concussion on Friday night, though the Washington Capitals defenseman did not agree with NHL vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan's assertion that he delivered a "reckless elbow" to the head.
While Erskine did not have "malicious intent," according to NHL vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan, the defenseman will still miss the next three games after giving Wayne Simmonds a head injury. The Caps were prepared for the immediate aftermath Friday night and are ready for life without Erskine in the near future.
Asked who he models his game after, Filip Forsberg hesitated only slightly.
Joe Sakic was four years old when his father took him to his first hockey game.
The clock was ticking on the Washington Capitals on Friday night in the first round of the NHL draft. Five minutes felt like hours, and commissioner Gary Bettman even implored: "Washington, you're on the clock. Let's go." General manager George McPhee and his scouts conversed long after the warning as time melted away.
John Tortorella stood out again at a playoff news conference. Only this time it was because of his feistiness toward the New Jersey Devils and not for his brevity and contentiousness with the media.
Alex Ovechkin served a three-game suspension during the regular season for a head shot on Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Zbynek Michalek that NHL VP of player safety Brendan Shanahan said was clearly charging. There was no penalty on that play, and the Washington Capitals captain still faced supplemental discipline.
A blindside hit, a history of violence and a league-wide crackdown on rough play earned Phoenix Coyotes forward Raffi Torres one of the longest suspensions in NHL history.
Raffi Torres of Phoenix was suspended 25 games by the NHL on Saturday for a late hit that resulted in Chicago's Marian Hossa being taken off the ice on a stretcher. The ban ensures that the Coyotes' forward will miss the rest of the playoffs.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman considers those complaints from various teams about their players receiving suspensions during the postseason as nothing more than "gamesmanship."
Had Nicklas Backstrom not drawn a match penalty for cross-checking Boston Bruins forward Rich Peverley in the face Monday, it's possible he wouldn't even have faced a disciplinary hearing with the NHL.
"Stuff happens in the playoffs," Karl Alzner said Wednesday, after the Washington Capitals were done banging the puck around at Kettler Iceplex. Oh yes, stuff does. Lots of stuff. After-the-whistle stuff. Before-the-puck-is-dropped stuff. While-the-officials'-heads-are-turned stuff. And let's not forget that old standby: after-the-game-is-over stuff.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman's vision of a bigger footprint for hockey is finally coming into focus.
He added, "Kaleta is in full control of this play, and has ample opportunity to make a better decision."
In reviewing the play on a video posted on the league's website, NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan noted Kaleta shoved a defenseless player from behind.
