With friends like Shawn Thornton, who needs enemies?
Thornton told reporters that he works out with Brooks Orpik during the summer months.
So, what caused Thornton to flip his lid and attack his friend?
"Listen, I feel awful. It wasn’t my intention. I know Broosky, I’ve gotten to know him over the last 7 years here, I skate with him in the summer, through the lockout. I’ve texted him a couple of times. I definitely feel awful. It was not what I wanted to see or what anyone wanted to see."
'What caused you to lose your composure?' a reporter asked.
"Obviously, I made a mistake. I’m aware of it. I’ve been told that I’ll be having a hearing and it’s hard for me to say much more other than that was not my intention. I feel awful and felt sick all game, so."
"That’s always my job, I guess, to defend my teammates, but I’ve prided myself for a long time to stay within the lines, and like I said, it’s hard for me to talk about right now. I can’t say I’m sorry enough, and I’m sure I’ll be criticized for saying it, but it’s true. I, I just hope he’s doing alright. I heard that he’s conscious and talking, and I'm happy to hear that".
Source: Bruins.com ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Bruins bruiser Shawn Thornton told Boston media that he has already been informed by NHL Department of Players Safety that he will be having a face to face hearing in the near future to answer for his assault in Pens D Brooks Orpik. An in-person hearing is a 6+ game standard.
Shawn Thornton: "It was definitely awful. Its not what you want to see. Its not what anybody wants to see. Ive felt sick all gm" #BruinsTalk
— Joe Haggerty (@HackswithHaggs) December 8, 2013Of course Thornton said that he feels awful. Who likes to be the center of a controversy? Who wants to lose game salary checks while suspended?
Is he truly remorseful and contrite for his inexplicable, gratuitous attack on a fellow NHLPA member?
I commend Brendan Shanahan and his group for not wasting time communicating the severity of Thornton's despicable act. Now, Shanahan has to block out all outside noise and he must deliver long suspension to Thornton.
Stay tuned for date and time of hearing.
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I'm absolutely disgusted right now.
Penguins D Brooks Orpik entered Saturday nights game versus Boston feeling very good about his team's performance this season and his own personal accomplishments. Orpik has been the leader of the Pens' D this season as he has been logging big minutes and playing in all key moments of the game. He was a lead pipe cinch to be named to Team USA's Sochi Olympics hockey squad. Now, he's dealing with a concussion.
All of that will have to be put on hold until he recovers from a serious head injury.
Orpik was mugged by Bruins' old-enough-to-know-better bar fighter Shawn Thornton who thought it a wise strategy to slewfoot his unsuspension victim to take him to the ice, wherein he proceeded to punch his victim in the face. Repeatedly.
Grotesque. Cowardly.
If this crime happened on the street outside of the TD Bank Gardens, Thornton would be booked in the local jail on assault charges.
Orpik left the ice on a stretcher with a serious head injury. Thornton was assessed a match penalty and was booted from the game. Thornton will automatically be suspended for his match penalty. Thornton will be suspended pending a hearing about the incident with Orpik. The only thing he has going for himself right now is that he has never been suspended in his 11-year career.
Bylsma on Orpik's injury: "I think he was out on the ice for a period of time, so I think that means he's got a concussion, for sure."
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 8, 2013
Rule 46.15- Match Penalties A match penalty shall be assessed to a player who punches an unsuspecting opponent and causes an injury.
Rule 21 - Match Penalties 21.1 Match Penalty - A match penalty involves the suspension of a player for the balance of the game and the offender shall be ordered to the dressing room immediately. A match penalty shall be imposed on any player who deliberately attempts to injure or who deliberately injures an opponent in any manner.
I feel like he deserves supplemental discipline on top of his suspension. This wasn't a guy getting hurt in a fight that he willingly agreed to enter. Thornton attacked Orpik in retaliation for a James Neal knee to the head of Brad Marchand earlier in the period.
Here's James Neal knee. Should be a suspension too, but Thornton will get a lot more. https://t.co/EawU5xi4lB
— Josh Rimer (@JoshRimerHockey) December 8, 2013Neal will likely be suspended too.
Earlier in period one, Orpik crushed Loui Eriksson with a clean body check which Thornton took offense to when he attacked Orpik.
If you follow Thornton's NHL career, you know that he is a card carrying member of the "NHL Code" fraternity. He preaches the "code" all the time. How carzy is it that ESPN's Katie Strang interviewed thiornton last month about his take on fighting in hockey. Strang's piece ran three days ago.
Shawn Thornton on the code THREE DAYS AGO (via @KatieStrangESPN). Crazy. pic.twitter.com/pCC07MP0MG
— Harrison Mooney (@HarrisonMooney) December 8, 2013Thornton violated the very "code" that he has been protecting for his 11 year NHL career. on Saturday night, Thornton became an violator of the "The Code" In effect, he's a hypocrite. He doesn't practice what he preaches. His act was reckless, dangerous, negligent, and stupid. I hope he gets a 30 games suspension for his idiocy.
Good luck with that. Bruins management and ownership have a lot of sway inside the NHL. I implore Brendan Shanahan to ignore the politics of the NHL and to do the right thing which is to ban Thornton from the league for a long time. Lets be clear. This was not a fight, Its was an attack. An assault. Big difference. Was Thornton upholding "the code" when he assaulted Orpik? looked like a stupid imitation of the disturbing "knockout game" phenomenon that I've been seeing on CNN and the local news programs where punks cheap shot helpless victims then scurry away.
For those cement heads who are screaming from the rooftops that this incident would have been avoided altogether if orpik would have dropped his gloves and fought Thornton was he was asked to go, I say shut up! Orpik is not going to fighter a fourth liner like Thornton. That's the job of Pens' heavyweights Tanner Glass and Deryk Engelland. Orpik is far too valuable to his team to throw hands with Thornton. Save your "Orpik side-stepped a fight and Thornton had no other choice" bull crap. Thornton thugged and mugged Orpik. Plan and simple. It was a text book assault. now, he'll face the NHL judicial system. Again, if Thornton perpetrated that same attack on Orpik at the bar or at the local mall, he'd be in jail right now.First time offender or not.