NHL (National Hilarity League) suspends Carcillo
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Flyers Report: Broad Street Bull
NHL (National Hilarity League) suspends Carcillo
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
Flyers left winger Dan Carcillo was given a four-game suspension by the NHL Sunday because of a game-altering
altercation in Saturday's 8-2 loss to visiting Washington.
"Decisions come down from the league. Do I agree with them all? No. I certainly do not agree with this one," general manager Paul Holmgren said. "We do not have a lot of recourse in this situation, Dan will serve his suspension and we will move on."
I understood Carcillo, being a repeat offender, getting suspended _ until I read the NHL's release on the reason behind its decision.
Carcillo, the league said, has been suspended four games, without pay (nearly $44,000) "as a result of a
deliberate blow to the face of Washington Capitals forward Matt Bradley."
Imagine that. A player getting into a fight and trying to hit his opponent in the face.
By the NHL's logic, I guess Carcillo wouldn't have been suspended if, say, he punched Bradley on the arm.
Call it the National Hilarity League. There's so much inconsistency in the penalties, suspensions and explanations that it's hilarious.
What the league should have said was this: Carcillo was suspended for not giving Bradley a chance to defend himself.
It also should have explained why Bradley was not given any penalties.
Carcillo appeared to get hit by Bradley’s high stick near the sideboards in Saturday's first period. Carcillo retaliated with a cross-check and dropped his gloves. Just as Bradley threw off his right glove as if he wanted to fight, Carcillo decked the Caps’ right winger with a right to his face.
Carcillo was penalized two minutes for cross checking, two minutes for instigation, five minutes for fighting, a 10-minute misconduct and a game misconduct.
Bradley got zero minutes.
New Flyers coach Peter Laviolette had a strict no-fighting policy when he coached in Carolina.
“Well, one it was the playoffs, and two we didn’t have a fighter,” Laviolette said after Saturday's loss. “The makeup of Carolina is completely different from the makeup of Philadelphia. I’m OK with Danny’s fight.”
But he wasn’t OK with the other stuff that went with it.
* * * * * * *
Laviolette’s system is “completely different” than John Stevens’, defenseman Chris Pronger said.
“The way he wants to play, it needs to be more up tempo, there needs to be more skating and more outlet passes – guys getting available for the puck, guys wanting the puck."
At Sunday's practice, Laviolette made an impression on his players, who have lost seven of their last eight games.
"He was almost moving his feet more than we were," Scott Hartnell said. "He wants action, he wants a lot of stuff happening around the puck. I think this intensity is going to be contagious."
"Every coach is different. We're trying to change the systems a little bit, step by step," Claude Giroux said. "We aren't trying to do it all in the same day."
Ian Laperriere said Laviolette is more vocal than his predecessor.
"He does the drills with the boys. He was out of breath, so you can tell he hasn't coached for a while," Laperriere said. "It's good. He is in the mix and that is what we need right now. We need a boost. We need a spark and if it can come from him it would be great."
Mike Richards called it "a different approach to the offensive part of the game. There is a lot of cycling, a lot of movement; that's what we've been working on. It is going to take a little bit of time to get our systems down. But the pressure on the ice is going to be a lot better for us."
But will it translate into goals? That's the question. The Flyers have scored a total of four goals in their last four games (all losses), during which they are 0 for 15 on the power play.
If they're suspending Carcillo for four games, what was the point of giving him 19 penalty minutes and a game misconduct on Saturday? Or vice versa? I know the league is trying to make a point and Carcillo is a repeat offender, but this much punishment for one punch is a bit draconian.— pidginwedge
Comment removed.- And when you see him again..Bust him in the mouth. Every time he is near you ...bust him in the mouth!— CommonSense4Philly
- i am a flyer fan but sam (and most of the people posting) have it way wrong. it was a clean hit carcillo took against the boards from bradley. carcillo clearly was trying to pick a fight to impress his new coach with his toughness (even though laviliotte has a history of teams that dont fight). bradley was skating away...wanting to give his team (and the #1 power play in the league) the man advantage. carcillo grabbed him by the shirt, pulled him closer to him and clocked him BEFORE bradley was ready to fight. we are still playing the old broad street bully style of hockey when the NHL changed 10 years ago. and carcillo...what has he done since we got him? 5 points this year...-15 rating last year. he is a 2nd rate goon who has 1/4 the skill of upshaw— rgertz81
- I'm no wet blanket when it comes to fighting or a enforcers reason for being on the team...I still question carcillos' presence on this team he takes dumb penalties and costs the team more and more each game..he should be shipped down to the minors and forgotten!— jon7173
- Both of Bradley's gloves were off when he got punched. I guarantee there would not have been a suspension if Carcillo didn't nearly take his head off with that swing. That's what Carcillo gets for swinging to quick, and too hard, I guess. Unbelievable.— rwright611
- It gets better check out Scott Walkers cheap shot on Ward from last yr's playoffs, NO SUSPENSION!!!!!! A Flyer doesb it and he gets 4 games??? The NHL is a JOKE!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLnEDFaDEdA— fff
- If anyone watches this slowly, the gloves are already off when the punch is thrown. Yes, they are just coming off, but they are off. Bradley obviously wanted to fight. Just because he was slow at defending himself doesn't mean he didn't want to join the fight. Should have gotten at least 5 minutes.— Rationality
No Sam, it's the National Hypocrite League.— potus- To amgabber, yea he was crosschecked while on his knees. Happens all the time in hockey. You see that on the video. On the same video, you see Bradley drop his gloves and then get dropped. Go count your teams cups. That's right, the Capitals never won a cup! Just because we hit and fight like other teams do, we're still living in the 70's. That is the most riduculous statement anyone can say. Go get your shine box.— Iceman65
- take off the orange-tinted glasses. total sucker punch. there's a certain level of respect for the opponent that goes along with a fight, which is what makes it such a great part of the sport. i wish he got 10 games, then maybe it would sink into his thick skull and i wouldn't have to watch him do something moronic every other game.— mrkmcc
- Sam, I really do no understand what you can be looking at to have the opinion this is a bogus suspension. Tell me what Bradley did to deserve a penalty in your opinion, check Carcillo lightly into the side boards? Carcillo has a very bad temper and can not control it on the ice, and for him to do what he did because of a clean hit along the boards is disgraceful! I am embarrassed to be a Flyers fan right now, and want, no demand Carcillo to be cut from this team asap; they do not need him for any reason what-so-ever, he offers nothing the team needs right now. How much you want to bet they win the next 4 games with him out of the lineup?.— jdeang
- Bradley starts the whole thing with a late check(after the puck was long gone) with his stick up high. Carcillo responded immediately and did not look to the ref for the call, he instead stood up and proceeded to right the wrong himself. Is it his fault that Bradley has the thought processing speed of a snail? Get rid of the instigator penalty, it has done nothing but bring cowards on the ice to the fore front. I am truly surprised that Asham did not get arrested for assaulting an official.......— flyerrod
- Hey I will say borderline on moral lol but last i looked his gloves and stick were out of his hands and Danny didn't take them out for him. Although he wasn't able to hold much after Danny hit him.— sphillysteve
- Just clarifiying my last comment. I like Dan Carcillo and I think he is a really good player to have on your 4th line. He just has to keep himself under control. If he can't keep himself under control though, he's going to hurt the Flyers, as we saw last night.— Dan K.
- 9 minutes of PK time was ridilous. Both players should have gotten fighting majors and the Caps shouldn't have gotten more than 4 minutes of PK time, maybe five. However, the fact of the matter is that Carcillo hurt his team with a selfish penalty. When Carcillo's punch landed, Matt Bradley's gloves didn't even hit the ground yet. Bradley didn't have a chance to defend himself. Carcillo got hit, lost his cool, and retaliated at the expense of his team. Bad penalites like that is why he was so heavily criticized in Phoenix.— Dan K.
- Come on, Carchidi. A sucker punch is not the same as a fight. Carcillo is a waste and we would be better off without him. Laviolette would send a message by cutting him right away like Dallas did with Avery— Flyers1975
- Stephane Auger should also get a four game suspension--- I believe NHL officials are all Bill Donaghy's facebook friends.— Romus
- Yeah, bad suspension by the NHL but at least he won't play for 4 games. Maybe Holmgren wakes up and smells the roses...least teh NHL finally helped out if for nothing else, the next 4 games. GET RID OF HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1— 67Flyer
- Easy call. People complain about the "new" NHL, but no league should ever cater to the fans who'd consider Carcillo's attack anything other than cowardly, cheap, and dangerous. You want a fight? You can hit the guy, push the guy, hold the guy, that's fine... but you have to give the guy a chance to defend himself, give him a chance to get his gloves off... you have to give him a chance to fight. Carcillo clearly had no interest in a fight, though, he only wanted to attack. So rather than square off against another guy, he sucker punched him. Cowardly, cheap, dangerous... and now he gets to sit for four games. Easy call.— MrHockeyFan
- You haters are at it again... Carcillo is exactly the player most of you haters said the Flyers lacked... HE gives them what you guys said the Flyers lacked-- a true BROAD St BULL. Hard-nosed, aggressive, intimidating, and in case you didn't notice, he set up Pyorala's goal just a few minutes earlier. He's been playing better than Mighty Mike lately, and you guys throw him under bus? Silly Football fans, leave the Hockey analysis to the Hockey Players, which are the only true fans of this sport, unfortunately. Let me guess, you guys don't like Hockey on TV cause you have trouble following the puck around the ice?!? Best fight from a Flyer in a few years, plus-- Dudes got a real strong last name. Little G out— Crazy Tony Gargano
LongestYard; The dumbest trade in Flyers history was Poulin for Linseman. Now, back to the facts. Lot's of haters here. I hate the F'N league that shoots itself in the foot year after year after year. Toronto. Rarified air up there. Four games for fast hands. What a joke. Ragging on the Flyers? Dirty? I guess you don't/haven't watched much hockey. After all......EVERYBODY knows the Flyers are dirty. STFU and STFD.- Comment removed.
- the NHL is such a joke anymore. I'm going to go be a union fan— EvoXMike
If Bradley had been called for the original high stick, and the fight, I'd have no problems with Carcillo's punishment. Auger is as anti-flyers as refs come. He should be banned from our building. Then, later in the game, Hartnell gets crosschecked and cold-cocked, but he only draws two minutes, and somehow got a penalty himself. I keep forgetting that being punched in the face unprovoked is a penalty against the flyers.— Pelti- Carcillo was a coward. What kind of man / fighter sucker punches like that.... oh wait it’s a Fishtown thing. This city has 17,000 hockey fans that have no clue about the sport. Speed, skill, hitting, and sacrifice are what makes this sport great. Not cowardness and garbage like DC, Asham, and Downie etc. - Its starts with Snider - Clark - Holms - and list goes on. Clean house now or this cycle will never stop.— ThomasPaine
Another brutal suspension handed down by Colon Campbell, after a brutal call by the ref in the game, where Maria Bradley gets Zero PIMs while dropping his gloves with the intention of fighting. Just because Carcillo has better reflexes and decked Maria with one stonecold punch.... Wow.
Get rid of Carcillo!
A game or two game suspension would fit the crime, but four? For once I'm going to look at the positive: if the Flyers win the next four games without Carcillo, take that as a sign they don't need this guy in the lineup to lose more games for them. I'm not sure the front office could make the connection.- If you look at the video, by the time Bradley dropped his glove, Carcillo had already landed the punch. If you want to fight someone, be a man and let him get ready before going at it. A 4-game suspension is not enough, IMO. I'm a Flyers fan. This team has no heart and is an embarrassment to the city.— Dannyboy1975
- Comment removed.
- If Cote is in the lineup next game in his place, I'M DONE!!!! I've had it, they have plenty of skilled players in the minors, Cote is THE WORST player in the NHL today, he's a goon who can't fight.— Njtod10
- Idiot. I'd say four games without his empty head will be an improvement for this team, but look at this team...... NHL is really bad now. Too many teams in the league and too many players lacking talent. Don't defend the play. It was stupid and he got what he deserved. Flyers think the way to play hockey is to just beat people up and "hit somebody." Not how the game is played anymore. Until they change their philosophy the Flyers will always be losers. The 70s are over. How long are we gonna keep clinging to those cups?— jibberjabber
- clean check by bradley...cross checked on his knees...definite instigator...sucker punch...4 games about right...another dumb goon...how d'ya like 8 goals against without ovie or knuble...serves them right...— amgabber
- So I guess this means that who ever wins a fight now gets suspended? With the way this stupid league is now, we never would have won a cup in the past... the entire team would have been suspended.— colorado_al
- Bradley s/b suspended 4 games for not being a man and respecting that aspect of the game!!!....What a little punk, DC gets suspended cause he was faster with the punch!!— CROSSI
- Four games for beating a guy to the punch. Absurd. At least Carcillo has a modicum of talent; that waste of space Cote needs to be jettisoned...— Brian F.
- Wow, this is by far and away the most ridiculous suspension in a league that constantly hands down ridiculous suspensions. The NHL has no fan base because it shots itself in the foot constantly. I miss old time hockey more than words can express...
- Comment removed.
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- LOL, just another step towards total ruin of this league. Awful— ChopItDown
- Great, that means that Cote is back in the lineup, I see another suspension in our future. Would someone please fire Holmgren another one of his great decisions has come back to haunt us!!! Any other great ideas homer?????? They seem to be working out so well!!!!!— jacdjc1
- dumbest trade in flyers history.— LongestYard
- Did they suspend the official for a brutal call???— sugardoc54
- I should say that I am suprised but from now on everytime there is a fight on any team, I want to see suspensions. Another Bonehead call by the rapidly declining NHL!!!!!!— jacdjc1
