Brooks Laich calls out NHL players for making a “mockery” of the game.

Laich not happy with what he sees.

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 3 years ago
Brooks Laich calls out NHL players for making a “mockery” of the game.
Keystone Press

I've been a fan of the National Hockey League for a very long time and although I can certainly understand the more modern push for player safety in the league I do have to admit that I miss some of the physicality that the game simply no longer brings to the table.

Over the weekend during a matchup between the Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens, Habs forward Brendan Gallagher was on the receiving end of a hit from Canucks defenseman Travis Hamonic that caused quite a bit of controversy. Gallagher was clearly hit between the numbers and was sent awkwardly into the boards as a result, and the entire thing happened while an NHL official was staring at the play no less. If you missed the hit here's a short replay.

Fans of the Canadiens were understandably frustrated at the non-call after seeing several similar plays result in penalties for their team during the regular season, but not everyone was of the same mind. One opinion that seemed to differ drastically from some of the others published on social media was that of former NHL player Brooks Laich. Instead of criticizing the league or the officials over their inconsistency, Laich was critical of Gallagher himself and other players in the league who he feels have started to exploit these type of situations in an attempt to avoid physical contact altogether.

Here's what Laich had to say, in his own words:

"How about some onus on players with the puck to stop putting themselves in vulnerable positions?" asked the veteran of nearly 800 NHL games. "Players are intentionally putting themselves 2ft from the boards with their backs turned to oncoming checkers and then either:

A) expecting to not get hit, or
B) draw a boarding call

"It’s making a mockery of the boarding call. In youth hockey, you are constantly taught to NEVER put yourself in that position because you cannot trust that the opposing checker won’t check you from behind, and permanently injure you - so you never put yourself in that position... It’s why we are taught to always angle into the boards, and not go in perpendicular to them. It’s hockey safety 101, but players are disregarding that because they know they can draw a boarding call, or at the very least have a checker “ease off” for fear of a boarding call."

Fans from every fan base have seen a player on their team get called after delivering a hit to a player who, like Gallagher in this situation, turned his back at the very last possible moment. The question of course becomes should the onus be on the player putting himself in a vulnerable position or the player looking to deliver the hit? At the speed which the game of hockey is played, especially at the National Hockey League level, I feel that it is far too dangerous to put the onus on the hitter who may not have a chance to sufficiently stop his forward momentum to avoid injury. 

Laich seems to be of that mind as well, and as a former player with well over a decade in the league his opinion no doubt carries some weight.

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