Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Crosby, Methot and the Problem with Today's Hockey Equipment

March 28, 2017, 9:34 AM ET [34 Comments]
Paul Stewart
Blogger •Former NHL Referee • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Follow Paul on Twitter: @PaulStewart22

When I look at the slashing incident with Pittsburgh Penguins superstar center Sidney Crosby on Ottawa Senators defenseman Marc Methot, here is what I see: I see a chop by Crosby, definitely worthy of a penalty and certainly not a gentlemanly play but basically your run-of-the-mill slash. The outcome was that the impact appeared to break off Methot's fingernail with messy results.

A big factor in Methot's injury: the construction of his gloves. Most players have traded off protection for comfort and, over the years, the gloves got shorter and softer. As a result, players leave themselves more vulnerable to hand injuries. This trend started in the 1980s with gloves popularized by Mario Lemieux and has continued to this day.

I once reffed an exhibition game in Worcester when Joe Thornton was a rookie with the Bruins. He got slashed on the cuff of his glove and ended up breaking that ulnar bone in his wrist. Even Pat Burns, who was coaching the Bruins at the time, agreed that the outcome came about because Joe was a tall guy wearing gloves that barely covered his wrist. That's the risk these guys take.

The fingers of the current-day gloves are kid leather soft. Again, this is what happens when you trade off protection for comfort: it can turn a well-placed chop on the hand into something more serious than it had to be.

I have issues with much of the equipment that is manufactured today; a lot of it is unsafe at any speed and the elbow pads and shoulder pads are basically lethal weapons. Yes, supply and demand is a factor but so is profit and cost to the manufacturers. The equipment companies charge more for gloves that use less materiel and are less complex to build. Thus they are cheaper to the manufacturer but there is no cost-savings whatsoever to the consumers. Well, did you really think that they were going to charge less?

The gloves nowadays give less protection than the ones my playing contemporaries and I used. The results of a slash are far more likely to have an end result of an injury such as this or Thornton's wrist.

Recall this: elbow pads came down the arm to the top of the glove. The gloves had ribs and extended up to the bottom of the elbow pad. Like interlocking parts, they protected the elbow, fore arm, wrist and hand. Now they mainly protect the bottom line of the equipment companies because player's get insufficient physical protection from them.

In the context of a hockey game, this slash is a minor penalty that had a major result. Because it's Crosby who take the whack, everyone who doesn't like him wants him hung and accuses the NHL of playing favorites. As anyone who reads my blog even semi-regularly knows, I have no problem with taking the NHL to task when I think the league is in the wrong, nor do I believe in "superstar treatment" for anyone. In this case, though, there was no supplementary discipline needed, nor a fine.

From an officiating standpoint, I think that the referees should have called a minor for slash. If the refs missed it, then they should be on the hook with their supervisor. The kid who got slashed had the puck in his possession. Where were they looking?


*********

Paul Stewart holds the distinction of being the first U.S.-born citizen to make it to the NHL as both a player and referee. On March 15, 2003, he became the first American-born referee to officiate in 1,000 NHL games.

Today, Stewart serves as director of hockey officiating for the ECAC.
Join the Discussion: » 34 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Paul Stewart
» The Stew: Kevin Pollack, We Nearly Missed, Thank You Fans
» Officiating: Reasonable Doubt vs Miscarriages of Justice
» My Advice to Matt Rempe
» Greig, Rielly and "The Code"
» Chirping Zebras Podcast