Brandon Dubinsky assaulted Sidney Crosby in the back of the neck and after Crosby was down hurt he finished him off for good measure snapping his stick in half in the process. He should be suspended for a very long time (20 games plus). There is always a certain faction of people who think that is too aggressive of a punishment, but I have yet to hear a good reason why a play like that should be in the game of hockey. It isn't competing it is a form of assault. The punishment for such an infraction should be one so severe we don't have to see garbage like that anymore. Who enjoys seeing that?
A very long suspension is what would happen in a league with any semblance of logic. However, that does not describe the league Sidney Crosby plays in. Brandon Dubinsky will have a phone hearing at 11:30AM and the most he will be suspended is five games.
Here is the play
Crosby left the game after this crosscheck to the neck pic.twitter.com/prWrhFWE4N
— Stephanie (@myregularface) November 28, 2015
did Dubinsky break his stick on Sid here? cc @dsigal9 pic.twitter.com/0SSGbH9N9w
— Stephanie (@myregularface) November 28, 2015
Remember that cross-checking penalty in front of the net the next time someone tells you Crosby has become a perimeter player
— Lyle Kossis (@LyleKossis) November 28, 2015
Here is the excuse making starting from Brandon Dubinsky himself:
"My stick rode up on him a little bit there. I felt like my stick ride up his back a little bit. He’s kind of bent over there in front. But again, that’s not the type of player. I am. I’m going to play hard, but try and play fair and play in between the whistle. I think the stick rode up a little bit, but it wasn’t malicious or vicious or too hard in my opinion. "
You are that type of player.
Columbus employees were also in full spin mode
Things to remember: 1) he's not a dirty player. 2) he's got a ton of respect for Crosby. 3) he did not do that on purpose.
— Rob Mixer (@RobMixer) November 28, 2015
Seems plausible...
Things to remember about John Wilkes Booth: 1) hes not a killer 2) hes got a ton of respect for Lincoln 3) he did not shoot him on purpose
— Dick Synonym (@AnthraxJones) November 28, 2015
As far as Dubinsky not being "that kind of player". Here is another sample from the same game
This is right before the Sid incident. Dubinsky tries his hardest to board Scuderi and then punches him in ... https://t.co/9oLv6Yn2GA
— Evgeni Malkin's Ego (@EvgeniMaIkinEgo) November 28, 2015
Here is an entire montage of just the things he has done to Crosby in the past
It would never happen but Sidney Crosby should use his status in the game of hockey and go nuclear on the NHL for their negligence on the player safety front. He is one of the few players who has the clout where what he says could be noticed and create a lot of attention.
If nothing else current players and former players can just load up with evidence for the upcoming CTE/concussion lawsuit and how the league has failed to properly discipline dirty play.
Thanks for reading!