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It's not like Hertl pulled a Yakupov and skated halfway across the rink doing a celebration. He scored a goal between his legs. That's perfectly legal under hockey rules. It's up to the Rangers to prevent goals scored in a legal manner. Unless he breaks the rules he can do whatever the fuck he wants. Seriously, what does Oates want him to do there? Go to the backhand? Maybe he gets stopped if he does that. It's his call as to how he wants to make that play.
I'm totally with Oates about certain things being out of bounds, and mistakes by young players getting overexcited, but this wasn't an example of that. Anisimov's shooting celebration was an example of that, Yakupov was an example of that (twice now, he had another one in a F$(% preseason game that pissed me off). But if a guy wants to score a goal behind his back through his legs with a blindfold on, if he can pull it off, there's no one the blame but the team defending it.
I mean, Christ, where do you draw the line? Does half the shit Datsyuk has done in the past 10 years count as "disrespecting the league" when he makes other teams look stupid? How about those spinning no-look back passes by the Sedins? Does this disrespect the league? It sure made the Oilers look ridiculous.
How about this? Sure humiliated Couture.
Just nonsense from Oates.
He actually said cock, not dick, but whatever. Now there's this controversy about whether the reporter who quoted him should've quoted him. Maybe, maybe not, but who the fuck cares? It's hilarious and does nothing but make me like Joe Thornton more than I did before. So I'm glad he reported it.
Any instance that shows NHL players having a personality rather than talking about how they need to get pucks in deep and make things difficult for the goalie and take it one shift at a time and ZZZZZ is fantastic in my book.
Here is what I see in that video.
Edler is going for the puck and skates toward it, recognizes that Hertl's skating for it too and they'll probably collide. He doesn't want a charging penalty, so he doesn't take extra strides. Hertl gets there first, at which point all Edler can do is stop him from getting by him for an odd-man rush. Since Hertl's played the puck, he's fair game to hit. However, he's in a crouched-over position, so part of the contact is made with his head. His helmet flies off in dramatic fashion, otherwise this probably gets no attention whatsoever.
Shanahan's argument is basically that Edler should have hit him in the side, rather than crossing in front of him and hitting him in the logo (with head contact). I have two problems with this:
1. Edler's first goal is to play the puck, so his skating path takes him towards the puck. That's his first priority. It's only when Hertl gets there first that he abandons that notion and settles for hitting Hertl, at which point his path has already long ago been set and he can't re-adjust to hit the guy in the side.
2. If he had done so, there's a pretty decent chance that he doesn't get enough of him, and Hertl is able to keep going, pick up the puck and go in on an odd-man rush, having just beaten the defender. Say, for example, this play from last week.
Shanahan effectively putting the burden on Edler to make a WORSE hockey play that could result in a goal against for Vancouver is just idiotic. If Edler does as Shanny says and Hertl squeezes by him - which he very well could - Edler gets yelled at by the coach and likely stapled to the bench for a while. Regardless of the hit, the right play was to get in front of Hertl and make sure he had to stop his momentum so that he was out of the play.
