Why Auston Matthews does NOT deserve a suspension for his actions on Sunday
Not 5 minutes after the final buzzer sounded at the Heritage Classic in Hamilton, the news came out that the Department of Player Safety would be reviewing Auston Matthews' crosscheck on Rasmus Dahlin for supplemental discipline.
The infraction happened in the third period of the outdoor game against the Buffalo Sabres. Matthews, in front of the net, was hit hard from behind by Rasmus Dahlin. Matthews tried to move out of the net but received 2 more crosschecks from Dahlin before he could find his footing. When he made it to his feet, Matthews delivered a high crosscheck in retaliation. Though it was directed at the shoulder, Matthews' stick ended up catching Dahlin's neck and head. Was it a dirty shot by Matthews? Sure. Was it warranted? Definitely. Is the pearl clutching from Sabres fans absolutely hilarious? Oh yes.
Matthews was given a 2 minute penalty on the play along with Dahlin.
For years now, Auston Matthews has endured abuse from opponents seeking to disrupt his game. The tactic is understandable. Without the many infractions against Matthews, he would be even less stoppable than he is now. The problem is, unlike other elite players, Matthews doesn't draw penalties. Despite never retaliating, despite never embellishing, despite having the puck on his stick a ridiculous amount of the time, Auston Matthews can't draw penalties. Even in this case, the referee doesn't raise his hand for a call until Matthews retaliates.
So now that Matthews finally stood up for himself, of course the Department of Player Safety, the term «safety» being used extremely loosely here, is stepping in. How many games will Matthews get? How many should he get?
Looking at comparable incidents, the correct answer is zero.
Jonathan Drouin was fined $5,000 for this much more dangerous crosscheck on Tyler Seguin earlier this season
Joel Edmunsson got, well, nothing for this brutal crosscheck on Wayne Simmonds during last year's playoffs
As for how many games Matthews will get, I'm sure it will be more than zero. Matthews has already started trying to talk it down, mentioning post game that he thought his stick rolled up Dahlin's shoulder.
Having no history of supplemental discipline didn't save Jason Spezza from a 6-game ban earlier this season, and it likely won't save Matthews here. The Leafs will likely be without their best player for at least a couple games. How many exactly is up to George Parros, and we all know how much he loves the Leafs.
| POLL | ||
MARS 14 | 498 ANSWERS Why Auston Matthews does NOT deserve a suspension for his actions on Sunday How many games will Matthews be suspended for? | ||
| 1 | 61 | 12.2 % |
| 2-3 | 112 | 22.5 % |
| $5000 fine | 164 | 32.9 % |
| None | 161 | 32.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
