Hit from behind on Maple Leafs' Boyce was stupid and dangerous
Former National Hockey League star Brendan Shanahan recently replaced Colin Campbell as the NHL's head disciplinarian and has since worked to make the game much safer, focusing specifically on hits to the head. This being the first illegal and serious hit of the new season made it that much more important for Shanahan to set an example.
Shanahan, acting as the new sheriff in town, has suspended Philadelphia's Jody Shelley for ten games following his vicious hit-from-behind on Toronto Maple Leafs centre Darryl Boyce. Shelley will miss the remainder of the Flyers' preseason games, as well as the first five games of the regular season.
Considering that the first five games are exhibitions so Shelley would have likely dressed for 2 or 3 of them, it is roughly equivalent to a 7 or 8 game suspension. Still, he got two games for last year's offence, and 10 this time, so if he does something foolishly dangerous again, he'll likely be looking at 20 games or more.
Beyond that, a fourth offence could mean a full season out and a fifth means you're gone from the game for a decade, effectively ending a "career."
The incident occurred in the second period of the Philadelphia Flyers' 4-2 preseason loss to the Leafs on Wednesday night. Boyce was hit hard from behind by Shelley and suffered a broken nose. Maple Leafs tough guy Jay Rosehill came in immediately and proceeded to fight Shelley.
Shelley, a 35-year-old NHL veteran, has a history of illegal and dangerous plays leading to suspension.
Source: TheScore.com
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