Guerin calls for NHL ban on hits to head
Written by on March 11th, 2010 in Latest News.
“If a guy gets hurt like that with a shot to the head, there’s got to be [some discipline],” says Penguins forward Bill Guerin. (Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Bill Guerin says the NHL must outlaw hits to the head.
That includes the kind of hit levelled by Guerin’s teammate, Matt Cooke, on the Boston Bruins’ Marc Savard.
Cooke knocked Savard out of the lineup for an indefinite period with a Grade 2 concussion sustained during a shoulder-to-head hit on Sunday, but wasn’t suspended.
NHL enforcement chief Colin Campbell said precedent was set when the Flyers’ Mike Richards wasn’t suspended for a similar hit on Florida’s David Booth this season.
‘Guys don’t mean to hurt each other, but they do. You got to pay a price for that.’— Penguins forward Bill Guerin on penalizing hits to the head
NHL general managers recommended during their meeting Wednesday that a blind-side hit to the head — or the kind Cooke inflicted on Savard — should not be permitted.
Guerin expected Cooke to be suspended.
“If a guy gets hurt like that with a shot to the head, there’s got to be something,” Guerin said. “Actions happen.
“Guys don’t mean to hurt each other, but they do. You got to pay a price for that.”
Guerin said players must know they can play the game with protection against hits to the head, especially those that a player can’t see coming.
“We’re all under the same umbrella, whether the guy’s on my team and I’m sitting right next to him or he’s playing in California,” Guerin said. “It doesn’t matter. We’re all playing in the same league.
“We all want the same safety. We all want to be looked after the same way. I know [Cooke] is on my team but, hey, he’s in a tough spot.”
The Penguins play the Bruins for the fourth and final time this season March 18 in Boston.
Cooke has been suspended previously for hard hits.
He sat two games this season for a hit to the head of Rangers centre Artem Anisimov. He also drew a two-game suspension for hitting then Carolina forward Scott Walker in the head Jan. 20, 2009.
Cooke was not suspended for a knee-to-knee hit on Carolina’s Erik Cole that occurred during last season’s Eastern Conference final.
