Andrew Ladd’s “Big” Hit? Really??
All anyone is talking about from last night’s game is that “big” hit from Andrew Ladd on the Habs’ Matt D’Agostini. Really? This is now considered a “big” hit? So, either hockey players have become big pansies, or the NHL is once again trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill. Newsflash: hockey, like football, is a violent sport. Has been since its inception. So then why is the NHL trying to dilute fighting and the hits needed to provide proper defense? Why is it such a big deal now?
That said, it does look as if Ladd’s hit was slightly dirty, though only Ladd knows his true intent. It appears as if Ladd’s skates left the ice about halfway through the hit to give it extra oomph, and that’s a no-no. But you’d have to super slo-mo it to decide either way. (Maybe Ladd could argue that his leaving the ice was reverb off of the energy it took to hit D’Agostini. Still, haven’t we seen hits this powerful before that weren’t decried as “dirty” or “big”?) Regardless, the NHL will almost certainly treat the offense disproportionately in order to make an example out of Andrew Ladd. This is, after all, the new NHL. I guess defense in this new era should be licked on by kittens.