Bunting got 5 and a game for elbow to the head of Cernak (suspended 3 games)

[General Fanager]

Well, you’re wrong

Well, no im not.

 

[Nothingbutglass]

Bunting is one dumb MF. People were talking about 4x5 for his next contract a year ago. Now he might be unemployable

 

[YayHockeysBack]

Well, you’re wrong

LOL. Leaf fans, the gift that keeps on giving.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

1. Having the puck or not having the puck doesn’t make a difference when taking a hit to the head. No one should ever hit anyone else in the head. Simple.

This is not true though. It's specifically why you can "hit" a player when they have the puck but get penalized for it if you threw the exact same "hit" when they weren't anywhere near the puck and not expecting to get hit. The act remains the same (ie. throwing a hit), but the *when* changes whether or not it's illegal.

Same thing applies here. If Cernak had the puck on his stick and Bunting threw the same hit, he probably only gets 1 game since he'd still be punished for the dirty act, but it would be a less harsh punishment because it was in the act of trying to hit the guy with the puck.

 

[pcruz]

Non-leafs fan here, so not biased.

The way playoff suspensions are supposed to work, are 4 regular season games typically equate to 1 playoff game. Was this worthy of a 12 game suspension?

It's his first suspendable offense, however it's certainly a disgusting play on his behalf. Given league precedent, I would say it's a 5-6 game suspension in the regular season, which makes it a one game suspension, maybe two. I do like that the league is clamping down on this type of play, but they can't just make an example out of the one guy refs don't like. This needs to be done for every player going forwards, or leaf fans yelling "BIASY" may have a point.

I want Leafs to lose fair and square, not because of officiating.

I have news for you:

They're not clamping down on this type of play.
They absolutely made an example of one guy the refs don't like.

Why am I saying this with confidence?

Because there was another elbow to the head hit last night and that hasn't received any warning of imminent supplemental discipline.

No fine, no suspension.

Because there was a hit from behind that would cause some soft tissue damage (whiplash) and there was no mention of anything.

Both of those plays last night are, as per the black and white rules of the game, match penalties.

Neither was even assessed a minor penalty.

I'll say this again for everyone to read clearly:

The league and the NHLDoPS doesn't give a f*** about player safety. They care solely about minimizing their legal liability.

It's why Bettman argued recently that there is no connection between NHL play and an increase in CTE.

 

[Nothingbutglass]

I have news for you:

They're not clamping down on this type of play.
They absolutely made an example of one guy the refs don't like.

Why am I saying this with confidence?

Because there was another elbow to the head hit last night and that hasn't received any warning of imminent supplemental discipline.

No fine, no suspension.

Because there was a hit from behind that would cause some soft tissue damage (whiplash) and there was no mention of anything.

Both of those plays last night are, as per the black and white rules of the game, match penalties.

Neither was even assessed a minor penalty.

I'll say this again for everyone to read clearly:

The league and the NHLDoPS doesn't give a f*** about player safety. They care solely about minimizing their legal liability.

It's why Bettman argued recently that there is no connection between NHL play and an increase in CTE.

So, basically, a conspiracy against the Leafs?

 

[LuLover96]

I have news for you:

They're not clamping down on this type of play.
They absolutely made an example of one guy the refs don't like.

Why am I saying this with confidence?

Because there was another elbow to the head hit last night and that hasn't received any warning of imminent supplemental discipline.

No fine, no suspension.

Because there was a hit from behind that would cause some soft tissue damage (whiplash) and there was no mention of anything.

Both of those plays last night are, as per the black and white rules of the game, match penalties.

Neither was even assessed a minor penalty.

I'll say this again for everyone to read clearly:

The league and the NHLDoPS doesn't give a f*** about player safety. They care solely about minimizing their legal liability.

It's why Bettman argued recently that there is no connection between NHL play and an increase in CTE.

When I posted this, it wasn't confirmed that Nosek would receive no supplemental discipline for his hit to the head last night. The league needed to prove it cared about the players, and it didn't. Bunting has rightfully or wrongfully received extra scrutiny from the refs since January or so, and his extreme suspension shows that the referees and DOPS work for the same goal.

I like to have faith that the league wants to do what's right, but it's so hard when these things keep happening. This blatant favoritism is as bad as the Campbell/Rome debacle in 2011. The league and its governing bodies suck, no doubt about that now.

 

[Chips]

I'm surprised the DoPS got one right for a change.

Cernak was nowhere near the puck so it was a hit on an ineligible player that resulted in an elbow to the head and a head injury.

This wasn't a hit gone bad. Plays like this that aren't hockey plays and should always be punished severely if they want to protect players brains.

I’m honestly surprised on multiple sites that usually universally crap on the DoPS for not protecting players, there’s a bunch of people just primarily focusing on past punishments being lighter


Like, they want change, but they don’t want change because change is unfisr



Buntings hit was entirely unnecessary, avoidable and quite possibly intentional. That alone should auto get a harsh punishment. Add in the fact the Cernak quite possibly will miss multiple games and or come back but play injured


Tampa took a big hit figuratively. I think the NHL probably factored that + how unnecessary it was. I have absolutely no sympathy for Bunting, or the leafs given they probably could see this as a net gain (particularly if Cernak misses multiple) given then Bolts defense depth


Dude is earning himself a Sean Avery-lite rep. I really think if he played for any other franchise, especially an American franchise he’d have that rep. The league should have tamed Avery and Wilson sooner. This is a good move

 

[Strangle]

This is not true though. It's specifically why you can "hit" a player when they have the puck but get penalized for it if you threw the exact same "hit" when they weren't anywhere near the puck and not expecting to get hit. The act remains the same (ie. throwing a hit), but the *when* changes whether or not it's illegal.

Same thing applies here. If Cernak had the puck on his stick and Bunting threw the same hit, he probably only gets 1 game since he'd still be punished for the dirty act, but it would be a less harsh punishment because it was in the act of trying to hit the guy with the puck.

Are you high? Where in the rules does it say a hit to the head with someone who has the puck is only a little bad, but a hit to the head when fighting for position to retrieve a puck is REALLY REALLY BAD OMG GUIS?

I must have missed that part of the NHL rule book. Pretty sure it just talks about hitting to the head without any mention of the puck

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Are you high? Where in the rules does it say a hit to the head with someone who has the puck is only a little bad, but a hit to the head when fighting for position to retrieve a puck is REALLY REALLY BAD OMG GUIS?

I must have missed that part of the NHL rule book. Pretty sure it just talks about hitting to the head without any mention of the puck

If you hit the puck carrier and end up making illegal head contact, you were at least trying to make a legal play to check someone.

If you hit someone who is nowhere near the puck as Bunting did, there is no circumstance where it's a legal play.


The rulebook probably doesn't specify "puck carrier" in rule 48.1 because it's illegal to hit someone not carrying the puck. There is no condition under which hitting someone without possession of the puck is legal. They are ineligible to be hit.

They don't have a high sticking rule and mention it has to be a hockey stick and not a tree branch because there are already rules in place regarding equipment.

 

[Strangle]

If you hit the puck carrier and end up making illegal head contact, you were at least trying to make a legal play to check someone.

If you hit someone who is nowhere near the puck as Bunting did, there is no circumstance where it's a legal play.


The rulebook probably doesn't specify "puck carrier" in rule 48.1 because it's illegal to hit someone not carrying the puck. There is no condition under which hitting someone without possession of the puck is legal. They are ineligible to be hit.

They don't have a high sticking rule and mention it has to be a hockey stick and not a tree branch because there are already rules in place regarding equipment.

Hitting to the head is the illegal play. Cernak’s head hunting is no better than buntings

It’s the hit to the head that’s the infraction, not interference

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Hitting to the head is the illegal play. Cernak’s head hunting is no better than buntings

It’s the hit to the head that’s the infraction, not interference

I'm not sure why you're splitting this hair but had he not hit him in the head it still was an interference penalty. Cernak was nowhere near the puck.

 

[Strangle]

I'm not sure why you're splitting this hair but had he not hit him in the head it still was an interference penalty. Cernak was nowhere near the puck.

You’re jumping in late, I was comparing the bunting hit to cernak’s head hunting hit on okposo.

Some guy said “how can anyone cheer for bunting?” I said the same way they cheer for cernak.

 

[BobClarkesfrontteeth]

I’m honestly surprised on multiple sites that usually universally crap on the DoPS for not protecting players, there’s a bunch of people just primarily focusing on past punishments being lighter


Like, they want change, but they don’t want change because change is unfisr



Buntings hit was entirely unnecessary, avoidable and quite possibly intentional. That alone should auto get a harsh punishment. Add in the fact the Cernak quite possibly will miss multiple games and or come back but play injured


Tampa took a big hit figuratively. I think the NHL probably factored that + how unnecessary it was. I have absolutely no sympathy for Bunting, or the leafs given they probably could see this as a net gain (particularly if Cernak misses multiple) given then Bolts defense depth


Dude is earning himself a Sean Avery-lite rep. I really think if he played for any other franchise, especially an American franchise he’d have that rep. The league should have tamed Avery and Wilson sooner. This is a good move

Nosek' hit is no different than Bunting's hit. If DOPS is really doing its job he gets 3 games. Otherwise the suspension to Bunting is just done as appeasement to the refs. I agree that Bunting deservered every second he got.

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

You’re jumping in late, I was comparing the bunting hit to cernak’s head hunting hit on okposo.

Some guy said “how can anyone cheer for bunting?” I said the same way they cheer for cernak.

ah gotcha. I'm definitely with you there. What Bunting did was stupid and deserved punishment, but Cernak certainly doesn't have a squeaky clean history either.

 

[Panthaz89]

I'm not sure why you're splitting this hair but had he not hit him in the head it still was an interference penalty. Cernak was nowhere near the puck.

I think you're missing the point that no one is arguing with that point. If I was arguing with semantics, I could at least say Bunting couldn't even see the guy he was hitting while the others took full strides and stuck their elbows out right into the heads of guys they clearly see. 82 games a year and we don't see constant elbows getting thrown towards the head of opponents on a hit. Either one is a severe risk to player safety no matter if they had the puck or not elbows entirely needs to be out.

 

[NyQuil]

I was expecting 2 to be honest.

 

[pcruz]

Nosek' hit is no different than Bunting's hit. If DOPS is really doing its job he gets 3 games. Otherwise the suspension to Bunting is just done as appeasement to the refs. I agree that Bunting deservered every second he got.

Bunting's suspension length is irrelevant.

The lack of consistency on similar plays throughout the league is the problem.

Bunting has, in my opinion, played himself out of the league.
He's definitely not back this series.

Whether by the NHL's desire or by the team's.

 

[Ovi895]

Bunting is one dumb MF. People were talking about 4x5 for his next contract a year ago. Now he might be unemployable

Right a gritty 50-60 point winger is gonna be unemployable because an NHL ref is friends with a child molester

 

[Ovi895]

Bunting's suspension length is irrelevant.

The lack of consistency on similar plays throughout the league is the problem.

Bunting has, in my opinion, played himself out of the league.
He's definitely not back this series.

Whether by the NHL's desire or by the team's.

Did you think Kadri played himself out of the league before he got a 7x7 contract too? Because Bunting has about 4 more years of bad playoff suspensions to get to where Kadri is

 

[pcruz]

Did you think Kadri played himself out of the league before he got a 7x7 contract too? Because Bunting has about 4 more years of bad playoff suspensions to get to where Kadri is

Bunting was a 26 year old rookie.
He was never good enough to earn a place in the NHL for 8 seasons.

Playing a specific role with Matthews and Marner earned him 62 points, along with a significant amount of skill for sure.
This season he has changed the way he's played.

Less Hyman, more puck carrier, shooter, play in front of the net. He was most effective in and around the crease and in behind the goal line to continue the cycle game with Matthews who is one of the league's best cycle players.

To add to this lesser effective play offensively, he started to gain a reputation from the refs for flopping and exaggerating infractions against him.

Sure he gets clipped often because he finds himself around the slot a whole lot, but he makes meals out of the contact and the refs got fed up.

Then came the high stick call he stole from the refs. For most players, that's not enough to kill your rep, but for some reason, his was shattered.

From then on, he never got the benefit of the doubt again until today. Never.
In fact, he was repeatedly hit in the head with sticks, once hard enough that the helmet cut his face after hitting the boards, and rarely gained a clean penalty.

He had been demoted to the team's 3rd line for the 2nd half of the season even when the team lost a bunch of forwards and played 20 or so games with 11 forwards and 7 defensemen.

The coach had clearly lost confidence in the player.

There was a game late in the year where some blatant incidents made it so the coach and the general manager had to intervene with the league and he played much more reserved after that.

Until game 1 of the playoffs.

The hit in itself is repugnant, but it's not the reason he will be passed over going forward.

It's the months of stupid decisions, poor play, and mostly the liability on the ice with the officials who have no respect for him out there.

 

[Craig Button]

You’re jumping in late, I was comparing the bunting hit to cernak’s head hunting hit on okposo.

Some guy said “how can anyone cheer for bunting?” I said the same way they cheer for cernak.

wow that hit is brutal.

How many games did he get?

 

[Stonehands 1]

Its not a conspiracy, im ok with it, its the way it is

So, basically, a conspiracy against the Leafs?

 

[Ovi895]

Bunting was a 26 year old rookie.
He was never good enough to earn a place in the NHL for 8 seasons.

Playing a specific role with Matthews and Marner earned him 62 points, along with a significant amount of skill for sure.
This season he has changed the way he's played.

Less Hyman, more puck carrier, shooter, play in front of the net. He was most effective in and around the crease and in behind the goal line to continue the cycle game with Matthews who is one of the league's best cycle players.

To add to this lesser effective play offensively, he started to gain a reputation from the refs for flopping and exaggerating infractions against him.

Sure he gets clipped often because he finds himself around the slot a whole lot, but he makes meals out of the contact and the refs got fed up.

Then came the high stick call he stole from the refs. For most players, that's not enough to kill your rep, but for some reason, his was shattered.

From then on, he never got the benefit of the doubt again until today. Never.
In fact, he was repeatedly hit in the head with sticks, once hard enough that the helmet cut his face after hitting the boards, and rarely gained a clean penalty.

He had been demoted to the team's 3rd line for the 2nd half of the season even when the team lost a bunch of forwards and played 20 or so games with 11 forwards and 7 defensemen.

The coach had clearly lost confidence in the player.

There was a game late in the year where some blatant incidents made it so the coach and the general manager had to intervene with the league and he played much more reserved after that.

Until game 1 of the playoffs.

The hit in itself is repugnant, but it's not the reason he will be passed over going forward.

It's the months of stupid decisions, poor play, and mostly the liability on the ice with the officials who have no respect for him out there.

Well Hyman still managed a 5.5 x 7 contract after leaving the Leafs and has more than lived up to it so far. Lesser Hyman is still a pretty in demand player.

This might have been before your time, but Alex Burrows was probably the single most similar player to Bunting preceding him - everything from riding shotgun to 2 star players, to being a pest with a mouth singled out by the refs, to even playing the same style. And he was still highly in demand until virtually his retirement from his body breaking down in his 30s.

No chance Bunting doesn't walk away set for life this summer, he'll be this year's consolation prize for whoever misses out on Bertuzzi

I wouldn't put it past the Leafs to walk away from him as they did from Hyman, Verhaeghe, Marchment, Kadri, Barabanov, Mikheyev and a whole slew of other players that embody everything they've been missing since the Matthews era

 

[pcruz]

Well Hyman still managed a 5.5 x 7 contract after leaving the Leafs and has more than lived up to it so far. Lesser Hyman is still a pretty in demand player.

This might have been before your time, but Alex Burrows was probably the single most similar player to Bunting preceding him - everything from riding shotgun to 2 star players, to being a pest with a mouth singled out by the refs, to even playing the same style. And he was still highly in demand until virtually his retirement from his body breaking down in his 30s.

No chance Bunting doesn't walk away set for life this summer, he'll be this year's consolation prize for whoever misses out on Bertuzzi

Not before my time.

I remember when he first made the league.

As for Hyman and Bunting:

Hyman has not changed his game to be something he wasn't in Toronto.

Hyman is the exact same player now that he was here - tough, gritty, facilitating for the others.
Hyman wasn't a pest in any way at all.

Bunting played 1 season being very similar to Hyman and this season being someone else.

This someone else is nowhere near as effective as he was when he emulated Hyman.
This someone else is an annoying and the officials hate his guts.

The great pests of my time - Barnaby, Tucker, etc, channeled their annoyance towards the other team.
Bunting has become a pest to the officials.

That's not redeemable.