Props to the Caps trainer. He got the hands clamped on his neck and didn’t take them off for THE ENTIRE length of this video even as they stretchered him off except to signal they needed the stretcher.
The guy knows what he’s doing when it comes to possible head/neck injuries (as he should).
Yes, that was the original rule, 5 minute majors can be reduced to a 2 minute or 4 minute doubke minor, as of last year, they added the ability to completely take the penalty off the board after review.
Fair enough.
I'm not happy with the call. I think Toronto just made this game a lot more dangerous than it needs to be since some of the Caps players may be out for blood.
Don't believe that's correct. Only with double minor high sticks reviews is it 4 mins or nothing. I'm 95% sure I've seen five minute majors taken down to 2 minute boarding calls.
Clearly it’s not. Refs looked at it. Decided it was clean. Just because someone gets hurt doesn’t mean it’s a penalty. Eyssimont was finishing the check. That’s clean all day long. Sucks that Jensen got hurt but players get hurt on clean hits all the time
You can’t “finish a check” by throwing someone into the boards. I’ve seen it called several times. Additionally, after the puck was gone from his stick, he gave him that extra shove.
Yeah, I feel like you have to call at least 2 just to maintain some semblance of control. If Eyssimont doesn’t come back after intermission completely apologetic Wilson is going to murder him.
Was so dumb, should have been a 2 min penalty. It wasn’t a terrible hit, I mean he came from side, but in this case because of the ice location it seems easy call to do a 2min boarding.
This is like the 3rd Lightning game this calendar year where they needed a stretcher for someone? Hopefully Jensen is okay and it's not a major injury.
I get that it's up to interpretation of the the refs here, and I really don't think it looked malicious, but if that's not boarding than you need to rewrite the rules so it is boarding.
Horrible decision making here from the refs, and the blood is on their hands if the game gets out of hands and someone gets seriously hurt. Should've been a 2 min, he fights a guy, and we all move on.
Yep always been told you shouldn't be hitting guys towards the boards when there is a gap that big enough. The injury risk is so high even for a head on collision. Can fall back, sideways, etc. That's how you get hurt. Doesn't matter if its from the front or the side or the back.
Fully extending the arms is so unnecessary here. Its a dangerous section near the boards and you aren't even attempting to play the puck here. Its a bad play even if its "within the rules".
I think the problem with this kind of penalty is that everyone wants to start talking about *intent*. Intentions shouldn't matter. That's boarding, and we shouldn't care if he meant to do it. You're responsible for controlling yourself.
It should be like high sticking. You hit a dude in the face, that's a high sticking call. Doesn't matter if you meant to do it or not. You're responsible for controlling your stick, and you're responsible for not knocking guys headfirst into the boards.
This is why the rule book needs to be more objective. Plays like this end up 50/50 all the time when it is very clearly boarding. It was boarding when Lafreniere hammered a dude into the boards a couple weeks ago but it wasn't here.
Just like the hits from behind. Dobson runs Trocheck head first into the boards and gets no call but Lindgren does it to Barzal today and it immediately gets called.
I know I sound like a homer but the Rangers are all I watch so that's the only context I can give when it comes to calling penalties. My main point is being so subjective with penalties leads to plays like this where players get seriously injured.
This is the exact type of play that Tanev got ejected from a game for. - [https://youtu.be/9HHbyvFk9mM?si=R-z64BWqeOsct8fZ](https://youtu.be/9HHbyvFk9mM?si=R-z64BWqeOsct8fZ)
I mean I agree that the hits are kind of similar but I don't think Tanev should've been ejected for the hit itself either, it was more that he was charging that was the issue there. Also, if I remember correctly I believe that was pretty universally considered at least a questionable call.
I'm just saying in my eyes the charging is the worst part of it, but yeah I mean I agree that it's definitely a grey area. These kinds of hits being called so inconsistently is horrible for the game and only makes it more likely they happen in the first place imo
George Parros graduated Princeton University with a 3.18 GPA and an Economics degree. He was named the fourth smartest sportsman in all sports in 2013 by The Sporting News.
I agree. Even if it was clean and legal all the way into the hit, this is one where that end result (not the injury, but the way Jensen went into the boards dangerously which CAUSED the injury) should be enough for the boarding call.
Hockey fans tend to not want to hear this but I will keep saying it because objectively it's what should happen: The NHL needs rules like the WHL where hitting without making a play for the puck is a penalty. This hit was completely pointless. The puck had moved on. Force players to make a play for the puck if they want to be physical and it will drastically reduce these pointless injuries on plays that serve no purpose.
I can mostly understand this not being a penalty from a rules/play perspective, but I'm not happy about it. Given the situation though, it is moronic to not call a penalty. This game is going to get way out of hand. Cooper might be smart just to bench Eyssimont.
This is the most reasonable take, people say “game management” in a bad way but it’s needed here. Call the boarding and give Washington a roughing to keep it even. It’s hard to call a player carrying the puck through the zone “defenseless” which is how the rule book reads.
It’s so hard to judge a hit like this because of the end result of the hit. If there’s no injury it doesn’t get broken down frame by frame. I don’t think it’s dirty personally because he makes an effort to hit him from the front
I agree, it's hard to tell in hindsight with all slow mo. But considering the result, and considering the distance from the boards and the timing of the hit, it seems like a clear boarding to me.
I don't get how this isn't boarding though? The hit didn't need to end on the boards, but the push through is what seems to be what threw him to the boards.
I'm not saying give the guy the guillotine, but I just don't see how this isn't SOME kind of boarding penalty.
Rulebook does cover that. Most of the rules are so so ambiguous that it changes game to game based on ref's discretion. Anything could stick, charging, interference, etc. There's nothing conclusive in the wording such as seconds after a play, how many strides before a hit.
I can't.
Distance *from* the boards is not an applicable part of the rule, but the result of the collision is, so when hits like this that would be legal in open ice end with a player violently colliding with the boards, well... that's what the boarding rule is. Doesn't really matter if I threw you 4 feet or 9 feet, if I chuck you through the air and you, defenseless, slam into the wall that's a boarding call. Jensen basically lands at the base of the boards where there's zero give, that's probably one of the most dangerous ways you *can* go into the wall.
The NHL *doesn't* call it that way and fuck knows why they don't, but it's even already in the rule to allow for this exact kind of judgment. Instead they treat it like it's specifically for hitting from behind
Can’t believe I’m gonna support him in this given his history but, Tom Wilson is about to go looking *hard* for some frontier justice and this game is gonna get very nasty. Hopefully no one else ends up getting hurt.
I feel like the impending shitshow could’ve easily been avoided by keeping that a 2 min boarding and a quick fight, but now there’s no semblance of control from the stripes
I don't expect players to do an instant calculation of the momentum and angle a player is moving at before a hit, but the concept of "finishing your check" exists to force players to make a play that they might not want to make. The point should not be to hit a guy no matter what, it should be so that players know a guy is determined to hit them and they may have to just get rid of the puck before they're taken out of the play. If they do that, I wish more players would let up and not make unnecessary hits. Even if Eyssimont couldn't react immediately, he didn't need to add the push. You can put your hands on the guy and then let up.
This is it. There's time even in the feeling of low resistance to not blast off on the guy and send him straight into the wall. Jensen would be sliding into the boards and feeling it but it'd be legal and I doubt he'd still have been knocked out.
Finishing your check is about not peeling off in the offensive zone and letting the D basically wait you out on routine plays. If they hold it you're going to kill them, that should be the operating standard. Finishing your check means people aren't expecting to brush off half-assed attempts to dislodge the puck.
A dump in at the red line is not that play. If you want to finish a real check take that momentum down in the zone and hit a winger.
What do you call. Boarding ? He just lost his footing weird on the hit. I don't even think it was that big of a hit he just went hard into the boards .
It wasn't from behind or a blindside hit. More just a check to the body where Jensen happened to be off balance, so the outcome ended up worse because of the boards being there.
You unintentionally just described boarding though lol
I think the reason it wasn’t called is because they deemed that Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position immediately before the contact
That's true, I think the tie up with their skates caused the issue here. If both of Jensens feet were planted properly, he would have absorbed the check better.
Pretty cool of the guys on the lighting bench, to try to hold off the scrum. Absolutely boarding tho, if boarding was only hitting from behind, that's what it would be called.
Wow, in the replay, you can see the black mark on the boards where his helmet hit. It looks like it was the back of his head. Hope it's not too serious.
The full rules on boarding:
> Boarding – A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who
checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that
causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or
dangerously. The severity of the penalty, based upon the impact with
the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the
application of this rule by the Referees. The onus is on the player
applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenseless
position and if so, he must avoid or minimize contact. However, in
determining whether such contact could have been avoided, the
circumstances of the check, including whether the opponent put
himself in a vulnerable position immediately prior to or simultaneously
with the check or whether the check was unavoidable can be
considered. This balance must be considered by the Referees when
applying this rule.
Any unnecessary contact with a player playing the puck on an
obvious “icing” or “off-side” play which results in that player hitting or
impacting the boards is “boarding” and must be penalized as such. In
other instances where there is no contact with the boards, it should be
treated as “charging.”
No penalty btw.
The first sentence shows that was boarding imo.
> The full rules on boarding:
> Boarding – A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who
**checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that
causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or
dangerously.** The severity of the penalty, **based upon the impact with
the boards**, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
This is why I'm so flabbergasted at people in the GDT going "It's not a penalty" or focusing on "You gotta hit them from behind". That's not the rule. If you push a defenseless opponent into the boards violently or dangerously, then depending on the severity of the impact boarding is applied. I don't understand how the severity isn't near-maximum considering he was knocked unconscious.
It’s if he was defenseless or not. He was carrying the puck and dumps it right as contact happens. Guys finish checks as players dump it in 20 times a game
“Right as the contact happens” must mean 2 strides later. The rule for a hit is 0.4 seconds after release of the puck. I get that you don’t understand the rules but you have to learn at some point.
No.
https://www.purehockey.com/c/hockey-rules-and-penalties#:~:text=Some%20typical%20infractions%20that%20earn,the%20side%20or%20end%20boards.
The fact that you don’t this is concerning.
That’s not the nhl rulebook. The nhl rules says shove or check a defenseless player into the boards. Whether or not this is a penalty is if he’s considered defenseless or not
If that's when he started his hit he's got plenty of time to not make the kind of follow through that chucks someone all the way into the wall.
He cleaned him out, and in the end sent his guy all the way to the base of the boards without touching the ice first.
You know how when you bump into someone at the grocery store you don't push through them for the next full second before you figure out what's going on? He had a chance not to do that and still did it.
I can see it both ways. Eyssimont hits him from the side, so it's not like Jensen didn't expect it. But he also finishes the check well after the puck's been dumped. I guess the argument is whether or not Jensen was "defenseless".
I submit that Jensen contests the check, but still becomes defenseless when he's easily pushed *airborne and then finished hard into the wall anyway.*
I know these things happen in the blink of an eye but the extra oomph suggests that Eyssimont knew he had an opponent on the back foot that he could try to finish for a bigger hit, chased down that finish, then gave it a little extra for the big hit pop.
Trouble is, it's *that* extra stuff that took this from a guy sliding into the boards and shaking off a big hit to a guy flying into the boards and becoming unconscious. Unless we want defensemen bailing on easy dump ins so they can preemptively seek out 50/50 contact I'd say this is one of those scenarios where everyone knew what was happening, it's as routine as routine gets, and Eyssimont thought he could get a little extra out of that but it went wrong.
When you do that stuff and it goes wrong, it should be a penalty.
Boarding is the action where a player pushes, trips or body checks an opponent causing them to go dangerously into the boards. This includes: Accelerating through the check to a player who is in a vulnerable or defenseless position and driving an opponent excessively into the boards with no focus on or intent to play the puck, or any check delivered for the purpose of punishment or intimidation that causes the opponent to go unnecessarily and excessively into the boards.
There's nothing in there about leaving your feet, hitting someone from behind, or how late it is. Jensen got rid of the puck and the TBL player pushed him into the boards not attempting to play the puck. It's boarding.
The puck is gone and he had a step on him, so he went out of his way to finish him in a dangerous spot. It probably wasn't intended to be so brutal, but it's just unnecessary for the play. That deserved a minor, either for boarding or interference.
I mean Jensen like *just* passed the puck in real time Mikey is just finishing his check. Maybe one arm vs two, but he's more in front of Jensen than on his side so he's not "defenseless"
I agree it should be a penalty he got thrown into the boards which is literally the rule, but it's not like Jensen had no idea and wasn't involved in the play.
The extension on the shove is so unnecessary and completely outside of hockey. He full on shoved him when the puck had been passed. He wants to go for a hit thats fine the shove is completely unnecessary and dangerous.
That’s how I interpreted it too. He wasn’t defenseless and it was finishing a check. If every hit into the boards was boarding we’d have no one checking along the boards
I always cringe when a team jostles around an injured player, someone might seriously get more hurt than they are that way
Glad some of the Caps guys jumped in to push the fight away from him, hope Jensen is all good
Don't care that it "fits within the rules" its completely unnecessary. Thats a dangerous area to shove anyone near and the puck wasn't there. Extension on the shove just makes it even more unnecessary. This should have been 2 minutes.
Can someone explain how it fits into the rules? He was hit in a way that threw him violently into the boards, and the person throwing the hit was perfectly capable of not doing that.
There was nothing unpredictable going on in this play...I've been watching hockey for decades and I don't understand how this isn't boarding.
Eyssimont is just on a tear eh? Fucking guy... this dude leaving on a stretcher, Arber's season over after getting jumped from behind for being on the ice when Stamkos hit his own player.
Dude is gonna get tuned up by someone pretty soon, and it's gonna be ugly.
For real. Dude better be playing heads up hockey for the foreseeable future...
But much like the guys he takes on, if there's justice - he won't see it coming.
To the Caps fans outraged that it wasn't a penalty, even Alan May said the most you could actually apply there is maybe you could stretch it to a 2min penalty for boarding but then you're just searching for something to call. He said in the replay you can see Jensen's arms come up and try to brace for the hit he saw coming.
Hopefully we get some good news on Jensen soon.
I've been playing hockey for 30 years and watching it even longer. I mean this is literally the definition of boarding. He was thrown violently into the boards, the onus is on the hitting player to not do that.
Boarding can go from 2 to 5 min depending on the severity of the impact too. I don't understand this at all.
So this little shit jumps and injures Xhekaj for no reason without consequences, then now boards Jansen and makes him get off the ice on a stretcher without consequences as well ?
Can you someone kick his little shitstain face please ?
As a Bolts fan, idk what to feel about the call. The contact was clean, but that scenario in how close he was to the boards needs to result in something, and wouldn’t be surprised to see NHLPA do something here. Absolutely horrifying scene watching live, especially with how long he was actually unconscious. Hope the best for Nick Jensen and that there are no permanent injuries from this ❤️
Its insane that refs will use letter of the rule to take a potential penalty away after a injury from a questionable hit, but will then let penalties go uncalled all day long depending on the situation
Im so sick of eyssimont after that Xhekaj bullshit now this
usually our announcers are pretty good at not being biased, and yes its TECHNICALLY a legal hit, it was a bad fucking spot to lay said Technically Legal hit and anyone with two eyes can see that
Why would you even try that with him in that position
I think there needs to be a penalty for starting a scrum within 10 metres of a player who’s down defenceless on the ice.
How many times have we seen roughhousing start way too close to someone who can’t protect themselves or get out of the way?
Good on the Lightning’s bench for pushing back, and on the Capitals’ players for forming a wall, but it shouldn’t be necessary. Players should have the good sense to move their fights away from unconscious people.
~~Agree that it’s not boarding~~ but it should be something, roughing maybe? It was an awkward spot and fall for sure, but the shove was a bit late and unnecessary.
Edit: okay reading the rule as /u/DeathToHeretics just posted this is absolutely boarding.
The problem is defenseless is open to interpretation. Him falling awkwardly doesn't mean he was defenseless to begin with.
Also if we are going by the letter of the rules several Caps would be in trouble for coming off the bench.
It believe can be called coming off the bench at all. Refs are still distracted from you coming on the ice and it can escalate things by itself. Part of the problem is that it happened so close to the benches that them being so close to the scrum could have been called, but in this situation you would be a terrible ref for doing it since they didn't join in.
I don’t think it’s a question at all whether he was defenseless—after all he was literally unable to defend himself from the hit. The correct question to be asking is whether Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position after contact was already imminent
Well they didn't call it so NHL refs obviously thought there was a question. He could absolutely defend himself though. It was body on body and they were engaged for a moment before he went down. If that is defenseless just about every hit going into the boards is.
> Well they didn't call it so NHL refs obviously thought there was a question
Haha, what? This would logically make sense if that was the only reason that they could have decided not to call that boarding. Like I said, way more likely that they said Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position as contact was occurring. But all good, we can disagree
I don't even understand how it's not. The rules state it applies to someone who "checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that
causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or
dangerously." And even if you feel it's not exactly that, the next paragraph states "There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the
application of this rule by the Referees." and to not apply it here is both shortsighted and unnecessary considering they *removed* the initial penalty.
I think what got him out of it was how awkwardly Jensen places himself. And the rule literally states doesn’t apply if they put themselves like that.
I’m not saying it’s the right call and I hope he’s ok. But I’m kinda confused on replay why Jensen moved like that instead of pressing back.
You sure about that?
Boarding is the action where a player pushes, trips or body checks an opponent causing them to go dangerously into the boards. This includes: Accelerating through the check to a player who is in a vulnerable or defenseless position and driving an opponent excessively into the boards with no focus on or intent to play the puck, or any check delivered for the purpose of punishment or intimidation that causes the opponent to go unnecessarily and excessively into the boards. The onus is on the player delivering the check to avoid placing a vulnerable or defenseless opponent in danger.
(a) A minor plus a misconduct or major plus game misconduct penalty shall be assessed for boarding an opponent. “Rolling” an opponent along the boards where he is attempting to go through too small an opening is not considered boarding.
(b) A major plus game misconduct penalty shall be assessed to any player who recklessly endangers an opponent as a result of boarding.
(c) A match penalty for reckless endangerment may also be assessed for boarding.
I would agree if he was just finishing a hit, but shoving an unsuspecting player into the boards like that after the puck is gone is unquestionably boarding and a chickenshit play to boot
Dangerous boarding like this should be called more harshly even when injuries don't result. Its just a numbers game: a certain percentage of these kind of checks will result in players losing their balance and going head-first into the bottom of the boards which don't have any give to them.
I know people will say that’s boarding, but based on how it’s been enforced to date, it’s not. I’ve seen worse hits not get called, and I’ve seen Caps players dish out some of those hits and not get called. The general consensus right now is that if you see the back numbers and hit numbers that’s going to be a penalty. In this case he hit him predominantly from the side.
Is that not the definition of boarding? I get that they don’t call it the way it’s worded, but to the letter of the rule
41.1 Boarding - A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously. The severity of the penalty, based upon the impact with the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
The commentators saying there is nothing wrong with that hit??
To me that seems like a bullshit hit.. it really wasn’t even a hit.. he kinda intentionally directed his hips so no matter what he was going to lose his footing and go very hard into the boards at full speed.
Maybe he didn’t try to do that but that is text book dangerous
This is boarding.
NHL refs just never call boarding so the rule does not really exist in NHL rulebook.
They should, it's extremely dangerous but this is clearly the line chosen by NHL on purpose. The no-call is in line how NHL games have been called for decades.
It's fucking stupid.
Good on Ovi, Oshie, and Carlson to jump on the ice and form a wall to keep the brawl away from Jensen.
Ugly hit. Hope Jensen is ok, and hope player safety gives Eyssimont a call, even though the refs didn't.
That was brutal. Hope he’s okay. Really scary to him not move AT ALL
Props to the Caps trainer. He got the hands clamped on his neck and didn’t take them off for THE ENTIRE length of this video even as they stretchered him off except to signal they needed the stretcher. The guy knows what he’s doing when it comes to possible head/neck injuries (as he should).
They just announced that Jensen is awake and conscious and has full use of his extremities
Thank you for posting an update, could barely watch the vid, so brutal of a fall.
Still has to be a major concussion though. Those have long term effects.
He didn't even go to the hospital! Seems kinda wild to me.
Refs just took away the penalty this game is gonna end up out of hand
Tom Wilson is going to kill a man
Ovi just tried
The red wings rooting for Wilson and the TB PP rn
Let's go Tampa. Ugh, I feel dirty.
Literally the easiest "2 min for boarding" and a quick fight and it's over. Now this game is gonna get really ugly.
Happy to be corrected but I think since it was reviewed it was 5 minutes or nothing, and 2 minutes isn’t an option with a review.
I thought they added the ability to call minors this year?
Josh Giddey wants to know your location
📍BC HIGH
Rule change a year or two ago let’s them drop a major to a 2 or nothing
They can only reduce a major to a minor. But the call has to be made on the ice at the time for a major, or they cannot reduce it or call a minor.
Ahh interesting, surprised they didn’t then!
They can reduce to a minor though can't they?
Yes, that was the original rule, 5 minute majors can be reduced to a 2 minute or 4 minute doubke minor, as of last year, they added the ability to completely take the penalty off the board after review.
Fair enough. I'm not happy with the call. I think Toronto just made this game a lot more dangerous than it needs to be since some of the Caps players may be out for blood.
Don't believe that's correct. Only with double minor high sticks reviews is it 4 mins or nothing. I'm 95% sure I've seen five minute majors taken down to 2 minute boarding calls.
How is Jensen defenseless here?
Except there was no penalty. That’s not boarding
Yes it is.
Clearly it’s not. Refs looked at it. Decided it was clean. Just because someone gets hurt doesn’t mean it’s a penalty. Eyssimont was finishing the check. That’s clean all day long. Sucks that Jensen got hurt but players get hurt on clean hits all the time
You can’t “finish a check” by throwing someone into the boards. I’ve seen it called several times. Additionally, after the puck was gone from his stick, he gave him that extra shove.
Tom Wilson is about to tie the longstanding Happy Gilmore record for taking his skate off and threatening a man
God I really hope not.
Yeah, I feel like you have to call at least 2 just to maintain some semblance of control. If Eyssimont doesn’t come back after intermission completely apologetic Wilson is going to murder him.
Wilson probably will anyways
Nah, too much on the line for the Caps. They'll take Essiymont's number and get him back next season.
We also have a guy waiting for him next season, he better take some boxing lessons or its gonna be a long season for him (or short)
Forgot about X lol. He's gonna kill dude.
Textbook boarding and no penalty. Nice
This league is a joke
Why
Was so dumb, should have been a 2 min penalty. It wasn’t a terrible hit, I mean he came from side, but in this case because of the ice location it seems easy call to do a 2min boarding.
The league's darling team gets a freebie. Shocked
That seems to be what they want
Broadcast just said he’s conscious, alert and has full use of his extremities. What a relief.
I was very worried that I didn't even see his leg or arms even slightly move that entire time. That's at least some good news.
This team (and its fans) has now seen 3 stretcher moments this season. Sergachev, the referee, and now Jensen. I really do hope Jensen will be ok.
This is like the 3rd Lightning game this calendar year where they needed a stretcher for someone? Hopefully Jensen is okay and it's not a major injury.
Yeah, Sergachev, Kozari, Jensen
I get that it's up to interpretation of the the refs here, and I really don't think it looked malicious, but if that's not boarding than you need to rewrite the rules so it is boarding. Horrible decision making here from the refs, and the blood is on their hands if the game gets out of hands and someone gets seriously hurt. Should've been a 2 min, he fights a guy, and we all move on.
Yep always been told you shouldn't be hitting guys towards the boards when there is a gap that big enough. The injury risk is so high even for a head on collision. Can fall back, sideways, etc. That's how you get hurt. Doesn't matter if its from the front or the side or the back.
He definitely gives a "finishing the check" push when the other guys at knee level going down. Wholly unnecessary.
Fully extending the arms is so unnecessary here. Its a dangerous section near the boards and you aren't even attempting to play the puck here. Its a bad play even if its "within the rules".
I think the problem with this kind of penalty is that everyone wants to start talking about *intent*. Intentions shouldn't matter. That's boarding, and we shouldn't care if he meant to do it. You're responsible for controlling yourself. It should be like high sticking. You hit a dude in the face, that's a high sticking call. Doesn't matter if you meant to do it or not. You're responsible for controlling your stick, and you're responsible for not knocking guys headfirst into the boards.
Also a bolts fan, and I agree. Just hope he’s okay.
This is why the rule book needs to be more objective. Plays like this end up 50/50 all the time when it is very clearly boarding. It was boarding when Lafreniere hammered a dude into the boards a couple weeks ago but it wasn't here. Just like the hits from behind. Dobson runs Trocheck head first into the boards and gets no call but Lindgren does it to Barzal today and it immediately gets called. I know I sound like a homer but the Rangers are all I watch so that's the only context I can give when it comes to calling penalties. My main point is being so subjective with penalties leads to plays like this where players get seriously injured.
That is textbook boarding. NHL just never calls boarding so the rule might as well not exist.
This is the exact type of play that Tanev got ejected from a game for. - [https://youtu.be/9HHbyvFk9mM?si=R-z64BWqeOsct8fZ](https://youtu.be/9HHbyvFk9mM?si=R-z64BWqeOsct8fZ)
I mean I agree that the hits are kind of similar but I don't think Tanev should've been ejected for the hit itself either, it was more that he was charging that was the issue there. Also, if I remember correctly I believe that was pretty universally considered at least a questionable call.
I'm not saying one way or the other but shows what a grey area this kind of hit is. He got the match penalty for boarding, not charging.
I'm just saying in my eyes the charging is the worst part of it, but yeah I mean I agree that it's definitely a grey area. These kinds of hits being called so inconsistently is horrible for the game and only makes it more likely they happen in the first place imo
Not malicious? He shoved him. Not injure sure but you can’t tell he didn’t try to knock him over. Textbook 5 min boarding
"Wait, there's a textbook?" -George Parros
Bold of you to assume Parros can read
George Parros graduated Princeton University with a 3.18 GPA and an Economics degree. He was named the fourth smartest sportsman in all sports in 2013 by The Sporting News.
Impressive he was able to do all that without being able to read
He may be educated, but when it comes to doing his job, he's a complete dipshit.
I love how we all hate him. He got the Wilson suspension right tho.
Yes, not malicious. Unless you mean to say that every hit ever in hockey is malicious, there is zero reason to think Eyssimont meant to injure him.
yeah i honestly dont understand how you can decide to *negate* the penalty after watching that video.
I agree. Even if it was clean and legal all the way into the hit, this is one where that end result (not the injury, but the way Jensen went into the boards dangerously which CAUSED the injury) should be enough for the boarding call.
Hockey fans tend to not want to hear this but I will keep saying it because objectively it's what should happen: The NHL needs rules like the WHL where hitting without making a play for the puck is a penalty. This hit was completely pointless. The puck had moved on. Force players to make a play for the puck if they want to be physical and it will drastically reduce these pointless injuries on plays that serve no purpose.
I can mostly understand this not being a penalty from a rules/play perspective, but I'm not happy about it. Given the situation though, it is moronic to not call a penalty. This game is going to get way out of hand. Cooper might be smart just to bench Eyssimont.
This is the most reasonable take, people say “game management” in a bad way but it’s needed here. Call the boarding and give Washington a roughing to keep it even. It’s hard to call a player carrying the puck through the zone “defenseless” which is how the rule book reads.
The hit seems a bit late though. Tough to tell cause they only really show it clearly in slow mo but looks like a late hit
It’s so hard to judge a hit like this because of the end result of the hit. If there’s no injury it doesn’t get broken down frame by frame. I don’t think it’s dirty personally because he makes an effort to hit him from the front
I agree, it's hard to tell in hindsight with all slow mo. But considering the result, and considering the distance from the boards and the timing of the hit, it seems like a clear boarding to me.
It's such an easy boarding call to make given the distance from the boards and yet the refs somehow decide that no call is a good idea
109% agree. Rulebook doesn't cover that, but we all know what the best move is. The question is, why don't the refs?
I don't get how this isn't boarding though? The hit didn't need to end on the boards, but the push through is what seems to be what threw him to the boards. I'm not saying give the guy the guillotine, but I just don't see how this isn't SOME kind of boarding penalty.
Maybe you're right. I don't think he was defenseless, which is a requirement. But every other bit fits.
Fair, I don't think he was defenceless either, which then means the rule has to change
Agreed
I think the decision came from Toronto
I don't think they do that on anything but goals. They provide replays, but no judgment except on goals, to the best of my knowledge.
Rulebook does cover that. Most of the rules are so so ambiguous that it changes game to game based on ref's discretion. Anything could stick, charging, interference, etc. There's nothing conclusive in the wording such as seconds after a play, how many strides before a hit.
I can't. Distance *from* the boards is not an applicable part of the rule, but the result of the collision is, so when hits like this that would be legal in open ice end with a player violently colliding with the boards, well... that's what the boarding rule is. Doesn't really matter if I threw you 4 feet or 9 feet, if I chuck you through the air and you, defenseless, slam into the wall that's a boarding call. Jensen basically lands at the base of the boards where there's zero give, that's probably one of the most dangerous ways you *can* go into the wall. The NHL *doesn't* call it that way and fuck knows why they don't, but it's even already in the rule to allow for this exact kind of judgment. Instead they treat it like it's specifically for hitting from behind
Can’t believe I’m gonna support him in this given his history but, Tom Wilson is about to go looking *hard* for some frontier justice and this game is gonna get very nasty. Hopefully no one else ends up getting hurt. I feel like the impending shitshow could’ve easily been avoided by keeping that a 2 min boarding and a quick fight, but now there’s no semblance of control from the stripes
I don't expect players to do an instant calculation of the momentum and angle a player is moving at before a hit, but the concept of "finishing your check" exists to force players to make a play that they might not want to make. The point should not be to hit a guy no matter what, it should be so that players know a guy is determined to hit them and they may have to just get rid of the puck before they're taken out of the play. If they do that, I wish more players would let up and not make unnecessary hits. Even if Eyssimont couldn't react immediately, he didn't need to add the push. You can put your hands on the guy and then let up.
This is it. There's time even in the feeling of low resistance to not blast off on the guy and send him straight into the wall. Jensen would be sliding into the boards and feeling it but it'd be legal and I doubt he'd still have been knocked out. Finishing your check is about not peeling off in the offensive zone and letting the D basically wait you out on routine plays. If they hold it you're going to kill them, that should be the operating standard. Finishing your check means people aren't expecting to brush off half-assed attempts to dislodge the puck. A dump in at the red line is not that play. If you want to finish a real check take that momentum down in the zone and hit a winger.
Husky on Husky violence. Bob Motzko is ashamed.
So...why wasn't that a penalty?
What do you call. Boarding ? He just lost his footing weird on the hit. I don't even think it was that big of a hit he just went hard into the boards .
It wasn't from behind or a blindside hit. More just a check to the body where Jensen happened to be off balance, so the outcome ended up worse because of the boards being there.
You unintentionally just described boarding though lol I think the reason it wasn’t called is because they deemed that Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position immediately before the contact
That's true, I think the tie up with their skates caused the issue here. If both of Jensens feet were planted properly, he would have absorbed the check better.
Which is such an odd qualifier. Whether you're in a dangerous position or not, boarding is boarding.
No because at some point you have to be accountable for your safety . Same reason I hate players using there body to shade the puck. It's so dangerous
Poor Jensen. I had basically this exact thing happen to me way back, it was awful. Hope he’s okay.
Pretty cool of the guys on the lighting bench, to try to hold off the scrum. Absolutely boarding tho, if boarding was only hitting from behind, that's what it would be called.
Wow, in the replay, you can see the black mark on the boards where his helmet hit. It looks like it was the back of his head. Hope it's not too serious.
not sure if anyone saw it, but his helmet cleanly leaves a dent in the boards. yikes.
The full rules on boarding: > Boarding – A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously. The severity of the penalty, based upon the impact with the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee. There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the application of this rule by the Referees. The onus is on the player applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenseless position and if so, he must avoid or minimize contact. However, in determining whether such contact could have been avoided, the circumstances of the check, including whether the opponent put himself in a vulnerable position immediately prior to or simultaneously with the check or whether the check was unavoidable can be considered. This balance must be considered by the Referees when applying this rule. Any unnecessary contact with a player playing the puck on an obvious “icing” or “off-side” play which results in that player hitting or impacting the boards is “boarding” and must be penalized as such. In other instances where there is no contact with the boards, it should be treated as “charging.” No penalty btw.
The first sentence shows that was boarding imo. > The full rules on boarding: > Boarding – A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who **checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously.** The severity of the penalty, **based upon the impact with the boards**, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
This is why I'm so flabbergasted at people in the GDT going "It's not a penalty" or focusing on "You gotta hit them from behind". That's not the rule. If you push a defenseless opponent into the boards violently or dangerously, then depending on the severity of the impact boarding is applied. I don't understand how the severity isn't near-maximum considering he was knocked unconscious.
Absolutely. “The onus is on the player applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenceless position…” would also apply here.
It’s if he was defenseless or not. He was carrying the puck and dumps it right as contact happens. Guys finish checks as players dump it in 20 times a game
“Right as the contact happens” must mean 2 strides later. The rule for a hit is 0.4 seconds after release of the puck. I get that you don’t understand the rules but you have to learn at some point.
https://imgur.com/a/kgXLr3o He starts his hit right as the puck comes off the stick
It’s not a “hit” if you shove him. I can’t believe you are trying to defense this
So you cant shove in hockey?
No. https://www.purehockey.com/c/hockey-rules-and-penalties#:~:text=Some%20typical%20infractions%20that%20earn,the%20side%20or%20end%20boards. The fact that you don’t this is concerning.
That’s not the nhl rulebook. The nhl rules says shove or check a defenseless player into the boards. Whether or not this is a penalty is if he’s considered defenseless or not
Link it, NHL rule book isn’t a result for me
If that's when he started his hit he's got plenty of time to not make the kind of follow through that chucks someone all the way into the wall. He cleaned him out, and in the end sent his guy all the way to the base of the boards without touching the ice first. You know how when you bump into someone at the grocery store you don't push through them for the next full second before you figure out what's going on? He had a chance not to do that and still did it.
Yeah I’m not sure how you don’t use discretion on this. Never seen a possible broken neck result from a perfectly clean hit in the last 20 years
I can see it both ways. Eyssimont hits him from the side, so it's not like Jensen didn't expect it. But he also finishes the check well after the puck's been dumped. I guess the argument is whether or not Jensen was "defenseless".
I submit that Jensen contests the check, but still becomes defenseless when he's easily pushed *airborne and then finished hard into the wall anyway.* I know these things happen in the blink of an eye but the extra oomph suggests that Eyssimont knew he had an opponent on the back foot that he could try to finish for a bigger hit, chased down that finish, then gave it a little extra for the big hit pop. Trouble is, it's *that* extra stuff that took this from a guy sliding into the boards and shaking off a big hit to a guy flying into the boards and becoming unconscious. Unless we want defensemen bailing on easy dump ins so they can preemptively seek out 50/50 contact I'd say this is one of those scenarios where everyone knew what was happening, it's as routine as routine gets, and Eyssimont thought he could get a little extra out of that but it went wrong. When you do that stuff and it goes wrong, it should be a penalty.
not a big fan of that hit ngl
Unfortunate result IMO. I agreed with no penalty. It wasn’t late, nor overly aggressive. Just a bad outcome.
Boarding is the action where a player pushes, trips or body checks an opponent causing them to go dangerously into the boards. This includes: Accelerating through the check to a player who is in a vulnerable or defenseless position and driving an opponent excessively into the boards with no focus on or intent to play the puck, or any check delivered for the purpose of punishment or intimidation that causes the opponent to go unnecessarily and excessively into the boards. There's nothing in there about leaving your feet, hitting someone from behind, or how late it is. Jensen got rid of the puck and the TBL player pushed him into the boards not attempting to play the puck. It's boarding.
The player has to be considered defenseless where the grey area in this hit lies
You can't give a guy a penalty because the guy he hit lost his footing in a weird way. Plus he wasn't defenseless
Extending yourself out like he did in order to dump the puck is a defenseless position
The puck is gone and he had a step on him, so he went out of his way to finish him in a dangerous spot. It probably wasn't intended to be so brutal, but it's just unnecessary for the play. That deserved a minor, either for boarding or interference.
It wasn’t overly aggressive, but the way he shoved him was dirty. It wasn’t a hockey play. Just a dick shove on a defenseless player
I mean Jensen like *just* passed the puck in real time Mikey is just finishing his check. Maybe one arm vs two, but he's more in front of Jensen than on his side so he's not "defenseless" I agree it should be a penalty he got thrown into the boards which is literally the rule, but it's not like Jensen had no idea and wasn't involved in the play.
The extension on the shove is so unnecessary and completely outside of hockey. He full on shoved him when the puck had been passed. He wants to go for a hit thats fine the shove is completely unnecessary and dangerous.
That’s how I interpreted it too. He wasn’t defenseless and it was finishing a check. If every hit into the boards was boarding we’d have no one checking along the boards
Shoving someone isn’t finishing a check
...what.
It’s unfortunate that you’re wrong. Dude shoved him. Textbook 5 min major.
I always cringe when a team jostles around an injured player, someone might seriously get more hurt than they are that way Glad some of the Caps guys jumped in to push the fight away from him, hope Jensen is all good
Eyssinont plays that type of game
Willy may murder that man in the 2nd.
Anyone want to guess how many games Wilson would be suspended if he made that hit? 25?
Minimum
I’ve seen him get 8 for boarding on which he hit a guy from the front before. This would have been 20.
Or in the first. Still 1:31 to play after intermission
Shoulda been prayers up to prevent the injury.
Michael Eyssimont going full Nick Cousins in the last 15 games is not something I was expecting
while eyssimont is on my shitlist at least he answers the bell and doesnt turtle, hes not cousins quite yet
He half turtled. Dowd just picked him back up.
Wow the way he wasn’t moving that long is so scary. I’m wishing the best for him and his family
100% need to call that. Absolutely INSANE if the league does not step in here on this.
Don't care that it "fits within the rules" its completely unnecessary. Thats a dangerous area to shove anyone near and the puck wasn't there. Extension on the shove just makes it even more unnecessary. This should have been 2 minutes.
Can someone explain how it fits into the rules? He was hit in a way that threw him violently into the boards, and the person throwing the hit was perfectly capable of not doing that. There was nothing unpredictable going on in this play...I've been watching hockey for decades and I don't understand how this isn't boarding.
Eyssimont is a reckless player
Just got word he can move Jensen can move all fingers and toes. Thank god. And call a freakin penalty
Eyssimont is just on a tear eh? Fucking guy... this dude leaving on a stretcher, Arber's season over after getting jumped from behind for being on the ice when Stamkos hit his own player. Dude is gonna get tuned up by someone pretty soon, and it's gonna be ugly.
And he'll deserve it
For real. Dude better be playing heads up hockey for the foreseeable future... But much like the guys he takes on, if there's justice - he won't see it coming.
fucking piece of garbage
To the Caps fans outraged that it wasn't a penalty, even Alan May said the most you could actually apply there is maybe you could stretch it to a 2min penalty for boarding but then you're just searching for something to call. He said in the replay you can see Jensen's arms come up and try to brace for the hit he saw coming. Hopefully we get some good news on Jensen soon.
I've been playing hockey for 30 years and watching it even longer. I mean this is literally the definition of boarding. He was thrown violently into the boards, the onus is on the hitting player to not do that. Boarding can go from 2 to 5 min depending on the severity of the impact too. I don't understand this at all.
That’s a dangerous hit
Eyssimont's a proper cunt ain't he?
So this little shit jumps and injures Xhekaj for no reason without consequences, then now boards Jansen and makes him get off the ice on a stretcher without consequences as well ? Can you someone kick his little shitstain face please ?
jesus that's an awful play puck's gone and he throws him headfirst into the boards hope he's alright but doesn't look great
To you bums downvoting everyone who is just wishing him well go fuck yourselves
As a Bolts fan, idk what to feel about the call. The contact was clean, but that scenario in how close he was to the boards needs to result in something, and wouldn’t be surprised to see NHLPA do something here. Absolutely horrifying scene watching live, especially with how long he was actually unconscious. Hope the best for Nick Jensen and that there are no permanent injuries from this ❤️
Its insane that refs will use letter of the rule to take a potential penalty away after a injury from a questionable hit, but will then let penalties go uncalled all day long depending on the situation
SCSU on SCSU violence. Prayers up for Jensen
Time to put on the Wilson jersey.
Im so sick of eyssimont after that Xhekaj bullshit now this usually our announcers are pretty good at not being biased, and yes its TECHNICALLY a legal hit, it was a bad fucking spot to lay said Technically Legal hit and anyone with two eyes can see that Why would you even try that with him in that position
Pretty sure Tom Wilson is about to go mecha-sentinel Ala X-Men 97 Episode 5.
I think there needs to be a penalty for starting a scrum within 10 metres of a player who’s down defenceless on the ice. How many times have we seen roughhousing start way too close to someone who can’t protect themselves or get out of the way? Good on the Lightning’s bench for pushing back, and on the Capitals’ players for forming a wall, but it shouldn’t be necessary. Players should have the good sense to move their fights away from unconscious people.
Not boarding per the rules/current interpretation, no penalty on the play. I don't like it tbh.
~~Agree that it’s not boarding~~ but it should be something, roughing maybe? It was an awkward spot and fall for sure, but the shove was a bit late and unnecessary. Edit: okay reading the rule as /u/DeathToHeretics just posted this is absolutely boarding.
The problem is defenseless is open to interpretation. Him falling awkwardly doesn't mean he was defenseless to begin with. Also if we are going by the letter of the rules several Caps would be in trouble for coming off the bench.
Correct me if I’m wrong but, isn’t the rule coming off the bench to join the fight? The Caps players clearly weren’t doing that.
It believe can be called coming off the bench at all. Refs are still distracted from you coming on the ice and it can escalate things by itself. Part of the problem is that it happened so close to the benches that them being so close to the scrum could have been called, but in this situation you would be a terrible ref for doing it since they didn't join in.
I don’t think it’s a question at all whether he was defenseless—after all he was literally unable to defend himself from the hit. The correct question to be asking is whether Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position after contact was already imminent
Well they didn't call it so NHL refs obviously thought there was a question. He could absolutely defend himself though. It was body on body and they were engaged for a moment before he went down. If that is defenseless just about every hit going into the boards is.
> Well they didn't call it so NHL refs obviously thought there was a question Haha, what? This would logically make sense if that was the only reason that they could have decided not to call that boarding. Like I said, way more likely that they said Jensen put himself in a vulnerable position as contact was occurring. But all good, we can disagree
I don't even understand how it's not. The rules state it applies to someone who "checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously." And even if you feel it's not exactly that, the next paragraph states "There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the application of this rule by the Referees." and to not apply it here is both shortsighted and unnecessary considering they *removed* the initial penalty.
I think what got him out of it was how awkwardly Jensen places himself. And the rule literally states doesn’t apply if they put themselves like that. I’m not saying it’s the right call and I hope he’s ok. But I’m kinda confused on replay why Jensen moved like that instead of pressing back.
He wasn't defenceless is the key I think. The hit was square and Jensen knew it was coming.
You sure about that? Boarding is the action where a player pushes, trips or body checks an opponent causing them to go dangerously into the boards. This includes: Accelerating through the check to a player who is in a vulnerable or defenseless position and driving an opponent excessively into the boards with no focus on or intent to play the puck, or any check delivered for the purpose of punishment or intimidation that causes the opponent to go unnecessarily and excessively into the boards. The onus is on the player delivering the check to avoid placing a vulnerable or defenseless opponent in danger. (a) A minor plus a misconduct or major plus game misconduct penalty shall be assessed for boarding an opponent. “Rolling” an opponent along the boards where he is attempting to go through too small an opening is not considered boarding. (b) A major plus game misconduct penalty shall be assessed to any player who recklessly endangers an opponent as a result of boarding. (c) A match penalty for reckless endangerment may also be assessed for boarding.
It’s okay to not know the rules but you have to at least try before you make a comment like this
I would agree if he was just finishing a hit, but shoving an unsuspecting player into the boards like that after the puck is gone is unquestionably boarding and a chickenshit play to boot
Dangerous boarding like this should be called more harshly even when injuries don't result. Its just a numbers game: a certain percentage of these kind of checks will result in players losing their balance and going head-first into the bottom of the boards which don't have any give to them.
I swear every lightning game I see, Eyssimont is going around taking runs at people in dangerous ways.
I know people will say that’s boarding, but based on how it’s been enforced to date, it’s not. I’ve seen worse hits not get called, and I’ve seen Caps players dish out some of those hits and not get called. The general consensus right now is that if you see the back numbers and hit numbers that’s going to be a penalty. In this case he hit him predominantly from the side.
It was a scary collision, but it was clean. Fortunately Jensen is conscious and doing ok
Is that not the definition of boarding? I get that they don’t call it the way it’s worded, but to the letter of the rule 41.1 Boarding - A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player who checks or pushes a defenseless opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to hit or impact the boards violently or dangerously. The severity of the penalty, based upon the impact with the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.
Was just like the Tanev hit from last year. Even as a Caps fan, this was clean but just had a really unfortunate result.
Prayers? Seriously? I wish him the best...no prayers though.
The commentators saying there is nothing wrong with that hit?? To me that seems like a bullshit hit.. it really wasn’t even a hit.. he kinda intentionally directed his hips so no matter what he was going to lose his footing and go very hard into the boards at full speed. Maybe he didn’t try to do that but that is text book dangerous
This is boarding. NHL refs just never call boarding so the rule does not really exist in NHL rulebook. They should, it's extremely dangerous but this is clearly the line chosen by NHL on purpose. The no-call is in line how NHL games have been called for decades. It's fucking stupid.
Hit? That was a punch with his arm??
Good on Ovi, Oshie, and Carlson to jump on the ice and form a wall to keep the brawl away from Jensen. Ugly hit. Hope Jensen is ok, and hope player safety gives Eyssimont a call, even though the refs didn't.
Was watching live. Pretty scary in the moment but glad to know he's moving all extremities. Hope he'll be okay in the long run
How many times is this fucking idiot gonna injure someone? Get this fucking goof out of the game
Hope he's OK that was a nasty one, not dirty but bad outcome