Fans Hammer Jennifer Botterill Following Fiery Debate on Hockey Night in Canada
Photo credit: Wikipedia
Jennifer Botterill, host of Hockey Night in Canada, came under fire this past weekend after she and her fellow panelists got into a heated argument over a dirty play on Saturday.
The play in question occurred during the game between the Penguins and the Canadiens. In the final seconds of the third period, when the outcome of the game was already known, Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj purposefully gave Penguins forward Noel Acciari a knee-on-knee hit. Acciari's hit on former first overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky earlier in the game was cited by former NHL player and fellow Hockey Night in Canada host Kevin Bieksa as justification for the play.
"Good team reaction from Montreal to come together as a team. That's why you want Xhekaj on the team and that's why you want him in the lineup for that stuff. The game is over... I think right there is the right time for Xhekaj to go at a guy who took out your star player earlier in the game. That for me is the right time to go at a guy."
Bieksa was referring to a play that occurred earlier in the third period when Slafkovsky and Acciari were vying for a loose puck. Slafkovsky was in a vulnerable position, reaching for the puck, but Acciari chose to hit rather than make a play on the puck, even though he had won the race.
The NHL Department of Player Safety made the rather odd announcement that Acciari would not face any additional punishment for the hit. Perhaps this is partly because Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj gave Acciari what he deserved during the game by hitting him dangerously in return.
Fortunately, these plays did not seem to seriously harm either Slafkovsky or Acciari. It should be mentioned, though, that Xhekaj is risking a lot with hits like these. He obviously meant to harm the Penguin, and even in circumstances like this, such behavior is unacceptable. He could have easily dropped the gloves or hit him with a huge clean hit instead, which would have been much more appropriate. This seems to have been the cause of Botterill's agitation.
"Then you get players with potential suspensions or fines and you guys are just fine. Guess what the game is changing and there is other solutions. Maybe it's changing, maybe it can change. It has changed, it doesn't always have to be an eye for an eye."
On this one, however, the majority of fans support Bieksa. There is some truth to her statement that sometimes it is better to let the players make their own decisions rather than relying solely on eye-for-eye conflict. This time, it seemed to go well because nobody was gravely hurt and everyone had a chance to express their opinions.
It would appear that the NHL largely agrees with Bieksa and Gazdic given that no players were fined or suspended for their actions during this game. Despite this, hockey fans generally view the Department of Player Safety as a joke because their decisions are inconsistent. In that case, this is just another file.
Latest 10 stories
