Drawing The Line When It Comes To
Safety Of Players
COMMENTS FROM OUR READERS
Tim Gmeinweser appealed the decision to Hockey
Alberta and lost his appeal. He will remain suspended for the
remainder of the 2002-2003 season.
Tim Gmeinweser voices his opinion on this situation and gives
everyone a first hand description on what actually happened during the
game in question. Click here
for more>>>
We thank all of the following readers who have taken the
time to send in their comments. Please be advised that the comments are
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Unfortunately there was another incident in Rockland
on December 14, 2006 where the coach was suspended for 60 days for
teh same type of incident. His appeal was denied by the ODMHA. The
salient point is what happens if play continues and a player is
seriously hurt, would the coach be guilty of negligence for
permitting play to continue when he felt it was unsafe to do so?
Geoff Hains
I can't offer a legal opinion in this matter,
but let's just say that it might be hard for a coach to defend
himself in front of a judge if asked that question.
On the other hand, once the game begins the safety of the
players is entirely in the hands of the referee. I have often
told referees that they would be the ones held the most
accountable if it was found that they knowingly put the safety
of players in jeopardy.
You almost have to develop a plan in advance with your parents
to anticipate such an occurance taking place. If you have some
way of getting a message to the parents so that they come down
to the ice level and "pull their children" out of
the game, there is nothing a coach can do. A coach cannot be
held accountable for the actions of his parents and if the
coach still intended to play, the referee would have to call
the game once he ran out of players.
The current rules do not help a coach who finds himself in a
situation where it is necessary to pull his team. When the
investigation is held, the parents of the "aggressive
team" will all state that the game was not out of hand
and that there was never any danger to their players. It
becomes one side against the other.
Another way to unofficially pull the team is to ask your
trainers and assistant coaches to leave the bench area. The
head coach can easily get himself tossed from the game by
starting an argument with the referee. The game cannot
continue unless there are "carded" coaches behind
the bench. Once again, the referee would have to call the
game. The team would not have been pulled, but rather ran out
of coaches.
Unfortunately, all of this must be planned out in advance,
especially at the beginning of the season. No one ever expects
to run into such a situation, but there should be a plan.
After all, we all have a fire escape plan, but we all hope
that we never have to use it.
Just something to think about in the future.
Thanks for the comment.
Robert Kirwan
Publisher, After The Whistle
Basically, coaches need an Emergency Action Plan (to
steal a concept for the Trainer's Manual) in the case that a game
gets out of hand. In my position as a business management consultant,
it would appear that the rule, although it was made with good
intentions, should be abolished sine it runs
contrary to Hockey Canada's mission to provide a safe and
sportsmanlike environment. In the book Reinventing Government,
the authors talk about rule driven versus mission driven
organizations. The current rules permit the suspension of
a coach for pulling his team off the ice
and puts the onus on the coach to prove his motives were for the
safety of the team; guilty until proven innocent.
If the mission statements of Hockey Canada were used as the driving
force of the organization, the coach would be permitted to pull the
team off the ice when the safety of his players was in jeopardy and
then the onus would be on the association to prove the contrary: innocent until proven guilty.
The fear is that if you revoke the rule, coaches will pull their
team off the ice with great regularity. I hardly think this
will be the case. Yes, there will be a few coaches that will
try to exploit the rule, but it will be a trivial exercise to spot
them and they can be dealt with accordingly.
More importantly, this puts the safety of the players in the hands
of the referee and the two caoches especially since most of the
minor hockey referees are teenagers.
I am the Trainer / Safety person for my Atom level team.
I had to take a
day-long course on how to look out for the safety of my team.
Recently, we
played a game where the Referee didn't show up, which I didn't notice
until
a couple minutes into the game. The linesman, who were not trained
or
empowered to give penalties, never called a penalty for the whole game.
We
were playing a team much bigger and stronger than us, and this team began
to
take liberties with their sticks and elbows, with no consequence. I
began
to consider pulling the team, not knowing of this consequence.
I think it is a stupid rule to suspend a coach who is looking out for the
safety of his players. What is being communicated by the CHA is that
it is
more important to finish a game than it is if a player gets hurt,
seriously
hurt or even killed. It makes me want to applaud the lawsuits when
they
come, because we deserve it for having such a stupid rule such as this.
It
should be considered on a case by case basis, rather than a flat one size
fits all kind of rule.
In the last year or so we had a very well respected coach,
loved by parents
and players placed in a situation where his players were taking a beating.
He traveled to Ont. (Thunder Bay I believe) from NS, with his Midget AAA
team for a tournament. This team was the best in Nova Scotia for some
time.
They were recruited by organizers who lied and tricked them into entering
this tournament which was not meant for 15 to 17 year olds but JUNIOR aged
players. Some players were close to 80 or more pounds heavier than their
opposition.
His attempts to speak with the officials to stop what he considered down
right dirty play were rebuffed by the referee. The coach took a brave
stand
when his players were being injured and pulled his team from the ice. For
this, the Ont association where this occurred contacted NS officials
and
demanded action. If the article is correct even some of the major
tournament
sponsors put pressure on NS to discipline him.He was suspended for 6
months.
( Some of my facts may be off but if you wish to research ,it you can find
in the Daily NEWS in Nova Scotia)
In situations like this, if it can be shown that the organizers of the
tournament mislead teams to enter tournaments, that organizer should be
disciplined severely. I would support a ban on his/her personal activity
for
3-5 years with any Minor Hockey tournament. Secondly, the tournament
itself
should be suspended for 1-3 years for disreputable conduct and lastly the
association hosting the tournament should be made to pay all expenses of
the
affected team. You now have put personal, group and financial
responsibility on all parties and would send a strong message to everyone
that the game of hockey is still about teens having fun and competing on
an
even playing field .
I am referee and a coach in NS and have worked with some obnoxious
referees
that create more problems than their worth. A better vehicle is needed to
assess and determine whose personality does NOT belong in stripes. (Having
said that there are also many, many coaches who have no business behind
the
bench.) Too many assessments are being done by co-referees in the same
organization. Perhaps its time to have outside assessors for all
officials.
Dan Pottie
To whom it may concern;
Although this is now an older article, it is an ongoing issue, this
is the
1st I've seen of the writing in question. I have been a player, a
coach,
and am currently an official in the area where this team resides (Although
I
was not involved in this tournament). I found a one sidedness
coupled with
a key bad attitude that is typical among the coaching and yes the hockey
establishment in general. Your article implys that it is up to the
referee
alone to keep control of a game and if it gets rough...unless its a one
incident thing,,that it is a referee's fault. You then tell other
stories
focusing on your percieved problems with refereeing and casting us in the
worst possible light. I would hesitate to count the amount of times
I do
games where the coaches begin to whine at the 1st hit agianst their
players..start karping at close calls that don't go thier way, and that
are
costantly agling for something every time I go by the bench. You as
a coach
will likely tell me thats part of my job and part of hockey to put up with
this. I would tell you back that this kind of attitude contributes
more to
games getting out of control, especially at younger levels, than anything
an
official does or does not call.
How often have I heard "Call that..or its gonna get outta
control."
"Someone's gonna get hurt", "Well we'll just have to
protect him ourself
then" "Ok guys, I guess Slashes/elbows/punches (insert
thing that may or
may not have happend depending on the point of view or vantage of the
viewer) are legal guys"..or the like...all delivered with almost a
gleefull..."if you wont call it like I (coach) see it then I will
absolve
myself of all responsibility for encouraging fairness" tone of
voice..usually delivierd across the ice at full volume.
Honestly..whoever
is reading this..if you are a coach of any length of experience, I can
almost garantee that you have either used these, or been in a game where a
coach has. Incidently this kind of thing usually ruins the coaches
credibility with the official within 15 seconds, resulting in him not
being
taken at all seriously when he may have a legitimate concern to discuss.
Think about it. You are your teams role model as a coach!
You are now
teaching them that A) authourity doesnt know best...that dishonest mind
games are the way to gain an advantage..to whine and cry (and possibly
scream and swear), to get revenge if the ref wont do it for you, that you
have no control about how the game will be played and its all up to him,
that 2 wrongs make at least a fairness, and that its ok to treat people
like
crap if they don't do things your way, and that it's ok to be willing to
hurt to win, if someone esle thinks the same way.
Then we are expected to keep these kids under controll??? We
have
penalties, but you have the relationship with the players. If you
are good,
they will respect you 1000% more than us no matter what we call.
Coaches
need to realize that in 99.9999999% of hockey no one is going anywhere and
the biggest thing the kids will take from this is LIFE LESSONS!!!
What are
our coaches teaching?
There are so many coaches that get their team jacket, strut around behind
the benches with it, and spend more time focused on what I'm doing than in
growing thier players as people and hockey players. THESE are the
people
that are dangerous to your children. Not some poor guy that may be
reffing
his 1st bantam game, his 1st playoff final, or just mabey a bad day
(yes we
have those, just like you do at work! We don't like it any more than
you
do, but if we appologize usually it is in turn used against us next time
we
see you. You wonder why we seem aloof?). In any case, the
offiial has to
learn and improve somewhere, just like the players do.
There is also the fact that the majority of refs work hard to
improve
thier game every time, to give a good effort, and to keep the game safe
and
fair. That last is our mandate by the way, not to call everything
that
happens to your team that MAY be a foul, or that MAY look nasty. We
have to
be fair to BOTH SIDES. If it was not a foul, it is NOT A PENALTY.
If I see
no way that player can be more than just winded, I will NOT be calling a 5
minute major for an injury. This would not be fair to your opponent,
even
tho yes, he may have committed a foul I must be fair to them as well.
I
know you don't like to see your players lying on the ice. Neither do
I.
But that will not change what I saw. You may have seen it
different. You
have a different angle, mabey no one skating in front of you, a better
view
of more of the ice, and a LOT more time to make your decisio...oh
wait..you
don't need to make a snap decision here do you? I do, and I get 1-2
seconds
max to do so. By the way, in my years of coaching, I never saw a
rule book.
Most coaches I talk to are in the same boat. As a referee
however I am
required to own and know this book. I spend time studying it, I talk
it to
my colleuges, and every year I have to prove that knowlege. I would
say
that after their 1st year, most officails REALLY DO know more about the
rules than most coaching staffs or players. Honest!
I don't mean to attack anyone personally, but I want you and any who would
see this to stop and think about what is happening at the rink and on the
bench. There are lots of good coaches who add to the game out
there...but
there are many many, who's behavior I wouldnt want modeled to my kids win
or
lose. If you want to protect young hockey players, start within the
team.
Is the lesson we want to teach that if you don't like whats happening, to
take your ball and go home? Is this something we want to
idealize and
heroize?
If the players don't commit foul play, I don't need to miss anything do I?
Sincerely,
B. Randall
Thank you for your comments.
I will post it on the site as soon as I have a chance.
Just a couple of comments, however, with respect to the issue.
All three of my sons were hockey officials. One is in the Ontario
Hockey
League and even refereed at the Under 17 World Championships in
Newfoundland
in 2003.
The main point I am making throughout the web site is that an
official does
not make the rules - he simply administers the rules. He is much the
same
way as a police officer who issues a speeding ticket. Most speeders
get
upset with the police officer, but they are really upset at being
caught.
Some referees would rather "not make difficult calls".One
of the most
difficult calls is the ejection of a coach. However, in many games,
the
ejection of a coach or a couple of players is all that is needed to
get the
message across and keep the game safe for the players.
You should never allow a coach to yell at you about calls. It only
infuriates the players and fans. Toss the coach and demonstrate that
you are
in control. Demonstrate that all coaches and players must respect
the
"position" you occupy as the referee. If you ever have a
chance to meet
President Bush, you will be forced to call him "Mr.
President", not
"George". You may not respect George Bush the person, but
you must respect
the position of the President of the United States.
I always maintain that the referee is the one who controls the
safety of the
players once the puck is dropped. However, when it comes to a court
of law,
I wouldn't want to try to explain to a judge why I allowed my
players to
take part in a contest which I knew was unsafe. Just look at the
lawsuit
which has been filed against Bertuzzi. It also names about a dozen
other
players and management.
Good luck with your officiating. And don't be afraid to use your
authority
to make the game better for the players.
Robert Kirwan
Publisher
I bought my first pair of skates this year. I have
two young boys in Novice and Initiation. I figured I better learn to
skate a bit just in case they needed some help during a practice.
This to say that I am not a product of a minor hockey program and know
little of it, save the horror stories of parents gone wild around the
coffee machines at work.
I learned of this situation during a recent tournament. Our team of
7 and 8 year old children were involved in a game against an overly
aggressive team. It was during this game that I learned of the coaches
suspension for protecting his players. I was infuriated. How
can an individual, whom I assumed was legal bound to protect my children,
be forced to do nothing. Sure I can step in and pull my child. Know
when would ever question my right as a parent to do so. I see that a
"young" official was involved. If
the coach is unable to action to protect the children, and the young
official is unable to control the situation, I am curious if the
Tournament Organizers would be found negligent in not protecting the
children from harm.
Tim Gmeinweser had a moral obligation, one that transcends any ridiculous
bylaw or regulation passed by a governing body of an organization that
publishes a document entitled "safety for all". Travis Brassington
Editor's Comment Thank you for your letter, Travis. I agree with you in
everything you say. It is frustrating, but those are the rules. The
Tournament Organizers could stop a game if they felt it was getting
out of hand. At that point, the coach would be "off the
hook". However, you will seldom see a tournament organizer take
that kind of action.
There is no way that a coach should have to sit and watch
his team get slaughtered without having any type of recourse. This is the
major issue in Minor Hockey, the coaches or team managers do not have
enough power to control their team or the situations that may arise. The
referees are given absolute power while the coaches have absolutley none.
This is totally wrong, as a minor hockey coach myself I am charged with
being responsible
for 15 kids, their parents in the stands and my assistant coaches
and yet their is no way for me to protect them from the opposition, the
refereeing or unsafe conditions. I think that any coach who feels that
their team or players are being abused then should have the right to
forfeit the game and take their team off the ice. This would serve two
purposes, the first one is the immediate danger on the ice and the second
is it might get the associations looking at the refereeing (which in most
cases is the root cause of the escalating danger on the ice) and the teams
that play under them. The game is meant to be fun and most people know
that getting hurt is not much fun. Let's get rid of the teams, players,
coaches, and referees who refuse to play the game fairly and cleanly.
Suspending coaches who are
usually volunteers for PROTECTING their teams is not the answer. Let's
stop the power tripping in Minor Hockey and find out why these types of
games are escalating every year and why it always seems to be the coaches
fault.
Signed,
A Tired of Being Blamed Minor Hockey Coach
I am the
head coach of a Midget Minor A team in Colorado. After reading some of
your comments I can't say strongly enough that there has to be one
person that decides whether players are at risk and make the call to
pull the team. Being a coach on a bench where the hockey knowledge of
the parents varies, several of my parents would pull their kids in the
middle of each game in fear for their safety. It cannot be up to the
parent to pre-emptively decide to pull their player otherwise the coach
has no control over the team and never will.
That said,
Coaches also have the ability to communicate with each other and I have
sent notes over to other benches requesting that they tone down the hits
or we would walk and in one case I walked over to the other bench and
told the coach the score speaks for itself so tone down the hitting.
There wasn't a case where that didn't work out. Another thing I do as a
coach is scout my opponents especially at tournaments. I know prior to
the drop of the puck what I think is going to happen and when I have
known I was facing a far superior team I have communicated with the
coach before hand. In every game the score was inevitable but the
experience had by both teams fostered sportsmanship and growth.
Bottom line
is that there is no standard for referees, they have authority without
accountability and in the end your not going to have the game experience
you are looking for if you expect them to control the game. Understand
what you are walking into and prepare your team your staff and your
opponent by letting them know specifically what you are willing to
tolerate and what you are not willing to tolerate and maybe at the end
of the day our kids will still grow up loving a great game independent
of the success of the teams they have been on or the game to game
experiences they have encountered.
Joe
Hopkins
The following is the description of the Canadian Hockey
Safety Program
(extracted from the EMHA website), a program that EMHA requires for each
and
every team to participate in - one that assists us parents in keeping our
players safe on and off the ice as stated below.
I read below that injury prevention is knowledge the trainer should
have.
Well, pulling a team in my opinion is injury prevention.
I as a parent of a Bantam player and hockey volunteer understand that many
factors influence how a game is played and the ultimate outcome. Safety
for
not only the players, but the refs, coaches and even spectators should be
the first and foremost concern.
Would there be as much debate on this if his team was winning!?!?!
CANADIAN HOCKEY SAFETY PROGRAM
OVERVIEW
The ultimate goal of the program is for all hockey trainers to implement
effective risk management programs with their own teams where safety is
the
first priority at all times, both on and off the ice.
"The trainer is as important as the best player on any team.
Therefore, it
is important that the trainer have as much knowledge and awareness as
possible related to safety, injury prevention, emergency planning, and
dealing with injuries until medical assistance can be
obtained."
-- Gaetan Lefebvre, Athletic Trainer for the Montreal Canadians and the
National
Spokesman for the Trainers Program
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
This program is targeted at volunteers who find themselves in the role of
a
trainer. It may be the:
Coach
Assistant Coach
Trainer
Parent who helps out
Drivers for out of town games
I as a parent take responsibility for my players' safety -
I ensure the equipment meets standards
I ensure that all equipment is worn
I ensure that my player respects his teammates, coach, opponents and
officials
I ensure that I drive safely to and from the arena
However as a parent (of numerous hockey years) it has never crossed my
mind
that I should read the EMHA bylaw to ensure that I would know what to do
if I felt my player was unsafe.
I put my trust in the coaching staff (there tends to be more than one)
and yet understand that they as parents have probably not taken on the
task
of reading the bylaws either.
Maybe EMHA is at fault here
Maybe EMHA needs to inform all players, parents, coaches and spectators of
their RIGHTS while at a MINOR hockey game.
Maybe EMHA needs to assist us all in making this a safe and FUN game for
all
involved.
Crystal Vandenbroek
I'm currently a USA Hockey Level 3 Official in Connecticut.
I've coached in the area for 15 years at all levels. I've been
involved on both ends in some great games and some really ugly ones.
Sometimes they just happen and there's not much an official can do to
avoid it, but it seems to me that most times when it becomes necessary for
a coach to decide whether or not to pull his/her team off the ice it's
because of a combination of ineffective and/or inadequate
officiating as well as ineffective and/or inadequate coaching.
I had an experience as an assistant coach in a game with my son once.
It was a peewee A-level game on the road and the officials assigned to the
game were, as in the case in the article, not up to the challenge in that
they were very young and inexperienced. They were both also
officials from the local area. Three minutes into the game two of
our players were already hurt due to hard checks from behind into the
boards. On one of the plays one of our injured players was even
penalized while he lay prone on the ice. Subsequently our head coach was
ejected from the game for his outburst following the play. After
another three minutes and further play along the same lines I pulled our
team from the ice to avoid further injuries. I wouldn't hesitate to
do it again given the same situation. As a coach I feel responsible
for the safety of my players and in this case I was concerned about that
safety enough to warrant this extreme measure to protect it. This is
not something I would do without serious consideration, and it's the only
time in my coaching career I've ever done it, but given the same situation
again, I wouldn't hesitate at all. There are times when we as
parents and coaches need to risk the possible sanctions in order to uphold
our responsibilities to our children. But I also believe that the
opposing coach was partially at fault for allowing the illegal and
dangerous hits to continue. We as coaches need to be instructing our
players, especially those just learning the checking part of the game, on
how and when to give AND TAKE a legal and effective check. Too many
coaches have taken the hit-to-intimidate attitude instead.
As a side note, as we were leaving the bench area with our players I
was approached by a mother from the home team who was amazed that we were
leaving and who screamed to me that I needed to remember that this game
was for the kids, to which I calmly replied "Exactly".
John G. Saitta, Connecticut
I have a son in Peewee level minor hockey in Edmonton. Our
Peewee team also had an opposing team coach pull their team during minor
hockey week. Really the only thing to say here is this: All coaches know
the rules about pulling teams during a game - they can't do it! They all
should also know that the parents CAN pull their team. Anyone involved in
minor sports of any kind knows that they as parents have the right to pull
their kids at any time and should exercise that right if they feel it
necessary.
In reading many of the comments sent in by both readers and coaches
many people seem to think that the coach is responsible for the safety of
their kids - WRONG!. We, as parents have that responsibility. If the
parents deem that their child is getting hurt or will be hurt then parents
are responsible to do something about it - whatever they deem right. It's
far to easy now a days to push that responsibility onto someone else. The
coach's are there to teach our children how to play the game as well as how
to belong to and play as a team.
Although this coach may have done this for all the right reasons I
don't agree with the coach pulling his team. The parents should have
pulled the team if they thought it necessary. Had the parents exercised
this option their coach would still be on the bench where they want him to
be.
Thank you, Wendy
Bravo!
Minor hockey needs more coaches like Mr. Gmeinweser who are concerned for their
players well-being. He should definitely NOT have been suspended for
his actions. Some would say that by allowing coaches to do this without fear of
penalty, that it would happen all the time. SO WHAT!
If that is what it takes to bring the problem to light, then so be it. The three words I really
hate to hear, "Let them play". Penalties need to be called. Until referees start calling all
penalties,
all the time, we will always have a problem in hockey at all levels. Yes, it slows
down the game.
SO WHAT!
It won't take long for players and coaches to wise up. Some would say that
the problem is that referees doing house league games are also doing
competitive games. SO WHAT!
I am fairly certain that a slash or a trip or a high stick or a punch, are
the same at all levels. Unless there is a more competitive way of doing
them that I am unaware of, please tell me. I would not tolerate being
sworn at or called names. Why should referees. Call penalties. Yes, some will get called that aren't penalties.
SO WHAT!
We need to put RESPECT back into the game. That has to start with coaches.
I hope I don't lose any sleep, knowing Mr. Cherry won't agree with me. Maybe if he were to say
something that would help, the problem would
change over-night. But that won't happen. Enough said. Let's do something.
R. Allen
Coach and concerned parent.
Ottawa, Ontario.
I am a parent with a son who played
minor hockey, coached in minor hockey for 14 years, reffed for 10
years in minor hockey, and am a referee coordinator. I am amazed how one
sided all the articles and opinions are of this incident. I to was
concerned about safety and refering quality while my son played but
decided it was better to get involved rather than bitch, blame and
complain.
I'm not trying to say dangerous situations
don't occur because they do. There are four main componets to a
safe hockey game in two coaching staffs, the referees and the
parent/fans. If any one of these or especially two of these components
does not have control, the players will soon respond and emotions take
over and dangerous play occurs. Each have their responsibilites to
do.
First many parents set the tone in the arenas and
fail to control their emotions. Any time their side isn't given the
upper hand by the officals, they yell and scream at young kids reffing hoping
to sway the next call. Parents and fans can and should cheer their team
but do they need to yell and scream at unfavorable plays or calls?
Remember even if they don't agree it won't make it any safer by
screaming at the ref. I never heard it asked if the fans were
civil in this case?
A coaching staff can control and have a huge
influence on the tone of the game. Although the coach in this situation,
has been congratulated for his actions, he has never been questioned
whether he used tactics such as sending his captain to the ref to ask
for explainations, or ask the ref to come to the bench to discuss the
situation rather than just yelling at him about his calls. He could of
also used delaying tactics, late line changes, send out one player to
many or one player short just to delay, or icing the puck
frequently. If the game result is no longer in question what's a
delay of game penalty or a missed scoring oppertunity. These games do
have ice time limits and the clock is turned down with five minutes
in the ice time. Another responsibility of the coach is to not
enter games which the skill level is unbalanced. Body checking at the
Bantam lower teirs is always a concern because of the
size and skating ability differances. Unbalanced abilities adds to the
danger.
Referees do have an equal responsiblity, to keep it
fair and safe. It has always seemed to be implied that the refing was
unfair. But the responsibility is equal to the other components not over
and above.
It is very evident the people in this incident
knew how to work the media for some attention. It's not like this has
never happened before, but it sure got a lot of attention. All the
focus was on how the coach should be supported for pulling his team
rather than how he might of been able to communicate with the referee
better and or change the pace and the mood. Pulling teams will not make
it safer. Since this incident we have already had some copy cats looking
for attention. If this trend continues to grow soon all or many 4
or 5 goal leads will result in teams leaving claiming it's unsafe.
If you really want to make it safer, we can use some
more adult referees, but make sure you do your part at the arena,
because you are part of it, even when you are just the reporter.
Dallas Steinke
First of all only the players, coaches, parents and referee attending the game can really
comment on what happened. Secondly, the players, coaches and parents
are seeing the game through tainted vision. They only see their son or their team being hit. The only non
bias person in the rink is the referee. If you don't believe me go to any rink sometime and
watch a full game. Listen to the parents screaming at their own kids, the other team, and the
officials. This is how the referee sees the game. From what I have heard
around the rink and from all the other postings it sounds to me that the New Sarepta team was not playing
dirty but just physical stronger than the other team. During the coarse of a hockey game
there are hundreds of instances where a strong player hits a weaker one and occasionally
someone gets hurt. Usually this happens to both teams. Unfortunately in this case the
other team had the majority of the stronger players. If the check is clean and someone get hurt this
is part of the game. The referee will not and should not call a penalty. The weaker player
has to learn how to protect them self when along the boards or keep their head up. The
only way you develop theses skills is by playing stronger players. Unfortunately this case
sounds a little more sever, and the players were getting hurt. I didn't hear how many players
were injured or the extent of their injuries. Did some players go to the hospital? Were there
any concussions or broken bones? If anyone knows I would appreciate the stats.
I do think that if a team is getting physically hurt that something has to be done. However if
we give power to the coaches to remove the teams from a game I assure you it will be
abused. There are many good coaches around and a couple of exceptional ones but
there are a few bad apples that would abuse this privilege.
Where do you draw the line? Can a coach pull his team if he feels his players are in
jeopardy. Or, how many players have to be injure to call it.
Part of the game is learning how to lose and sometimes it is a hard lesson to take. Some
people would rather quite then go through it. I am not saying that is
what happened in this case because I wasn't there but I am saying it would happen. I raise this question,
do you think the coach would have pulled his team if they were winning??? Despite the fact that they
were getting beaten physically.
There is one way to avoid the 1 year suspension and stop the game. You can run out of
players. This can be achieved by injuries and/or penalties. This is an
unfortunate way to end a game but you are in an unfortunate situation.
