Jonathan Bombulie and Kevin Oklobzija do an eloquent job.
Thinking back on it today, I think what bugs me most about that rule at this level is that, simply, this is a development league. A key skill, at any level, is getting the puck out of the zone. You develop your skill at chipping the puck off the boards, off the glass, to clear. In game situations, you’ll sometimes miss. The punishment for missing in this case borders on cruel and unusual, particularly when your team is already short-handed. I can understand wanting your rule book to mirror the NHL’s, but, well… You wanna hang ’em in the Show, say they should be better by that point, well, we’ll disagree, but OK; it won’t be the first time. Down here, keeping him on the ice to try again is punishment enough.
But Kevin notes what may well be the key factor, and wouldn’t you know, it involves lawsuits.
(I feel compelled to link to Randy Cassingham’s Zero Tolerance pages.)
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Was in the middle of several things in the moments leading up to 2:10 or so Friday afternoon. And then I heard Gary Cohen speak words that seemed impossible to believe.
The Mets were wearing their blue caps.
On the road.
Brethren, you know I get into this stuff — sometimes too much. But seeing that combination again — albeit imperfectly, ’cause the jersey has undergone some changes over the past decade — well, on its own, it almost made the afternoon.
Oh, who’m I kidding: It did.
And then other things happened over the next nine-plus hours, but long story short: Thanks, Charlie Samuels…
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Add San Jose’s Dan Spang and Jonathan Tremblay to the non-tendered list.