Tim Panaccio: VOTE: Did Rinaldo Deserve at least 10 Games?

I'm a nobody, for sure. But it seems to this "nobody" that the experts and public are almost incapable of using logic and reason anymore and that they simply bust out with the first emotional thought they have.

I would rather we have not traded a third rounder for this guy..........I would rather we play a rookie kid from the ahl.

But the illogic in most things that are sports and news is getting kind of scary........

He might be an bumhole, in fact I agree that he is. But, that was an interference call maybe a charge at the most.

No, he didn't deserve 10 games

IMO the hit was late but the NHL didn't agree with that. Also I believe Rinaldo changed his trajectory to deliver the hit in an upwards fashion. 10 games? No. The penalty was sufficient plus 1 or 2 games but I guess they couldn't do that.

Rinaldo is piece of crap but I agree that no suspension was the correct call.

10 games? Absolutely not. More than 0? Heck yes.

I wanted 5 or 6. I expected 2 or 3. 0 is a joke.

Paul Stewart's blog is a good perspective on the reality of this hit. Rinaldo has a gift when it comes to laying hard body checks. In fact, pound for pound, no one hits harder in the NHL. Its why he stays on NHL rosters. He isn't earning a salary for his skill with the puck. I remember him hitting gaborik so hard in open ice that it broke his collarbone. That was a clean hit. That is a valuable skill. The problem is that instant where he needs to make the decision NOT to follow through and wait for the next opportunity because if he doesn't, it will hurt his team, or another player. He has shown an inability to make the correct choice. The reason he played under 6 min a game for the Flyers was because he is a liability in this respect and not because of skating, defensive, or puck handling shortcomings. He needs to understand that if he is able to hold off on the dangerous plays, he will get more ice time, and thus more opportunities to lay big clean checks. At this point, I agree with Paul in stating that if he hasn't figured that out yet, he isn't going to figure it out and the NHL needs to throw the book at him.

That all said, if you look at the hit in a vacuum, the call on the ice was correct, and it is a toss up on a suspension. 0, 1, or 2 games would be ok in my book. Aside from the injury, the sad part is that Rinaldo's talent is rarer than goal scoring in the NHL. Most of the big open ice hitters in the league are hip check guys (Kronwal) or so large that they can't accelerate well and depend on the speed of the other player to create the "big" hit (Byfuglien). Rinaldo is a rare talent, but his stupidity will find him with no place to play in the near future.

Sorry, but like simmer said, you e got to be aware. Courts had his head down. Something he was taught in pee wee. KEEP YOUR HEAD UP.
Clean hit. It's hockey after all. Or should we play it like basketball, guard but don't touch. Screw that!

Rinaldo is a turd but I didn't think the hit was suspension worthy. His "charge" was no worse than 95% of Ovechkin's hits.

The whole point of a check is to separate the player from the puck. The puck is gone prior to Rinaldo's arrival, mostly due to the check/pressure that the other Boston playing is putting on Couturier.
My biggest issue with this play is the game clock though, there's less than 2 seconds left in the period when this happens and based on where the puck is, there's no chance of a scoring opportunity. The check is absolutely needless at that point and does not belong in the game.

The whole point of a check is to separate the player from the puck. The puck is gone prior to Rinaldo's arrival, mostly due to the check/pressure that the other Boston playing is putting on Couturier.
My biggest issue with this play is the game clock though, there's less than 2 seconds left in the period when this happens and based on where the puck is, there's no chance of a scoring opportunity. The check is absolutely needless at that point and does not belong in the game.
- RyKo17

That's the problem I had with the hit. Looked to me like the puck was long gone. I was expecting a couple game suspension, but I'm not freaking out that there wasn't. I just hope that Cooter's concussion is not too bad and he can get back soon.

A suspension (1 or 2 games) is needed to continually deter other players from targeting, or possibly targeting the head. It's a dirty hit, and he's on the ice only to do one thing, hit. That said, the Flyers players should have known this was going to happen.

After watching this hit like 100 times, I have to say... what the heck was Couturier thinking? It's like he never expected any body contact on the play, and it was coming from straight in front of him. It's like Rinaldo was invisible to him, and yet he's right there in front of him, cruising right towards him.

I think no suspension was the right call... and the NHL player safety video is all the explanation you need. Though I was honestly surprised there was no suspension, simply based on his history.

Hopefully Rinaldo smartens up before he crosses that line and gets suspended. He needs to learn he doesn't have to hit 100% of the players that have the puck 100% of the time...

I expected 1-3 games, mostly based on reputation. No way it should be 10 games though.

After watching this hit like 100 times, I have to say... what the heck was Couturier thinking? It's like he never expected any body contact on the play, and it was coming from straight in front of him. It's like Rinaldo was invisible to him, and yet he's right there in front of him, cruising right towards him.

I think no suspension was the right call... and the NHL player safety video is all the explanation you need. Though I was honestly surprised there was no suspension, simply based on his history.

Hopefully Rinaldo smartens up before he crosses that line and gets suspended. He needs to learn he doesn't have to hit 100% of the players that have the puck 100% of the time...
- mixturebill

He was watching the puck...simple as that. The loose puck squirted behind him and as Rinaldo is approaching he is turning his head trying to find the puck. Thus why he never saw him or the hit coming.

To me the defining aspect of the hit (besides being late) was Couts wasn't leaning over reaching or otherwise to lead to the high contact. Rinaldo went out of his way to make high contact which is why to me it should have been some suspension. 10 games is a bit much but if they are going to suspend Torres for 41 games b/c of his "history" and going out of his way to make a hit I'm not sure how they can justify giving Rinaldo zero given his history and going out of his way to make a hit. Just more inconsistency from player safety

He deserved 10 game if you believe hockey should be turned into a wuss sport.

Couts was also being pressured from behind by McQuaid. He had nowhere to go. Suspendable or not it was definitely unnecessary.

Tim Panaccio: VOTE: Did Rinaldo Deserve at least 10 Games?
- tpanaccio

YES

He was watching the puck...simple as that. The loose puck squirted behind him and as Rinaldo is approaching he is turning his head trying to find the puck. Thus why he never saw him or the hit coming.

To me the defining aspect of the hit (besides being late) was Couts wasn't leaning over reaching or otherwise to lead to the high contact. Rinaldo went out of his way to make high contact which is why to me it should have been some suspension. 10 games is a bit much but if they are going to suspend Torres for 41 games b/c of his "history" and going out of his way to make a hit I'm not sure how they can justify giving Rinaldo zero given his history and going out of his way to make a hit. Just more inconsistency from player safety
- uf1910

Yup, you're right... he had his head down, and was watching the puck... which is exactly why he got lit up (and why there was contact with his head). If he had his head up, he would have braced for the impact, and we probably wouldn't even be having this conversation.

That hit wasn't late at all... the puck literally left his possession like .5 seconds before he got hit. Watch the replay with the game clock... Pause it when Couturier touches the puck (roughly with 1.8 seconds left) and again when Rinaldo makes contact (at about 1.3 seconds). It happens all the time (nearly every play in the playoffs) where you see body contact a full second or two after the puck has been moved, and this was WELL within that time frame.

I'm not trying to defend Rinaldo the player, I'm just trying to defend this single check, and the player safety committee's decision.

YES
- Nucker101

No...

10 Games for that Hit = that is an overreaction, Still don't know why this guy is on the Roster He cannot change his game because that is his game,
maybe I'm wrong but it's not like he is going to be dropping the mitts with any Heavy's so good-bye and stop being so friggen stupid Sweeney.

Yup, you're right... he had his head down, and was watching the puck... which is exactly why he got lit up (and why there was contact with his head). If he had his head up, he would have braced for the impact, and we probably wouldn't even be having this conversation.

That hit wasn't late at all... the puck literally left his possession like .5 seconds before he got hit. Watch the replay with the game clock... Pause it when Couturier touches the puck (roughly with 1.8 seconds left) and again when Rinaldo makes contact (at about 1.3 seconds). It happens all the time (nearly every play in the playoffs) where you see body contact a full second or two after the puck has been moved, and this was WELL within that time frame.

I'm not trying to defend Rinaldo the player, I'm just trying to defend this single check, and the player safety committee's decision.
- mixturebill

I didn't mean for all of that to be a reply to you. Only the first part.

Watching again I have to agree, it wasn't nearly as late as I originally saw. The point I was making about watching the puck was in relation to the physical placement of his head. Sure he wasn't looking for Rinaldo coming but he also wasn't "reaching" thus lowering his head and placing himself in a dangerous position. He was standing damn near straight up just with his head turned following the puck. Keep in mind Rinaldo is listed at 5'11" and Couts is 6'3". This wasn't a case of a taller player lowering his head thus putting himself in a dangerous position. This was a shorter player laying a hard hit high on a taller player. I don't in any way think it warranted 10 games but it needed a few games.

Again sorry I sent the reply to your comment, only meant for the first part. Got distracted at work

No way, perfectly handled by the league.

No malicious intent, solid body check, just unfortunate for Couturier.

I didn't mean for all of that to be a reply to you. Only the first part.

Watching again I have to agree, it wasn't nearly as late as I originally saw. The point I was making about watching the puck was in relation to the physical placement of his head. Sure he wasn't looking for Rinaldo coming but he also wasn't "reaching" thus lowering his head and placing himself in a dangerous position. He was standing damn near straight up just with his head turned following the puck. Keep in mind Rinaldo is listed at 5'11" and Couts is 6'3". This wasn't a case of a taller player lowering his head thus putting himself in a dangerous position. This was a shorter player laying a hard hit high on a taller player. I don't in any way think it warranted 10 games but it needed a few games.

Again sorry I sent the reply to your comment, only meant for the first part. Got distracted at work
- uf1910

That's cool, no need to apologize... I wasn't really factoring in the players heights but that is a good point. I really think the main reason he he clipped his head is because he was looking down for the puck. I still feel like if it was another player delivering the check, it would have been a two minute minor. I can understand why you think it deserved a couple of games, and the only reason I would agree is because he does have a history. It looks like Couturier will miss at least a game, and though I feel like that hit wasn't an attempt to injure, the fact that he is injured and Rinaldo is still playing seems wrong.

Maybe it would be smart to have some sort of rules in place for a player to serve as many games as the injured player misses. It couldn't be as black and white as that, but maybe as part of a multiple offender program, which Rinaldo would certainly qualify for.

That was a clean hit. Shouldn't even have gotten a penalty.

It's funny how the player safety video says the support the 5 minute charging call on the ice, but then clearly states and demonstrates through video that it is not charging.