On Saturday, Islanders bad guy Chris Simon was given a match penalty for stomping on the leg of Penguins winger Jarkku Ruutu. It's likely that Simon will see a very lengthy suspension after the league reviews the incident.
The video shows that Simon goes to the bench area, gives Ruutu a slew-foot, knocking him to the ice, then deliberately stomps on the foot/ankle/leg of the prone player.
Last season, Simon received a 25-game suspension for his baseball-like swing at the head of Rangers' winger Ryan Hollweg. The 25 game ban spanned the remainder of the 2006-07 season, the playoffs and the first five games of this season. In his career, he had five other suspensions totaling 10 games.
When the Hollweg incident occurred, there was a lot of noise being made by hockey fans looking for a life ban on the Simon. Most people assumed that it would work out that way anyway because Simon became a free agent over the summer. Because of his advanced age, his minimal skill set, his propensity for injuries and his bad reputation, we all assumed that nobody would pick up a contract on him. The Islanders proved us all wrong.
When Simon was re-signed by the Islanders, I guessed that it was a favor extended to him by coach Ted Nolan, who is a fellow First Nationer. Nolan has been a long-time surrogate father to the troubled Simon.
This latest transgression is completely undefendable. There will be no "he was just finishing his check". There will be no "Ruutu helped himself into the ice" or "it only looks bad because of the slow motion".
I think the league needs to really bear down on this and give him another "very long" suspension. 20 games. Ted Nolan, who did Simon a huge favor, should be embarrassed about sticking his neck out and he should be furious with Simon. This is unbecoming of a hockey player, and for all the trouble Nolan has gone to on Simon's behalf, this is unbecoming of a First Nationer. Not that I would know, mind you.
Simon refused to comment after the game, and Nolan will wait until he has "reviewed the situation" to make comment.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
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1 comment:
I agree. This guy has proven over and over again that he does not deserve the privelege of being a pro athlete. He has no respect for the players and obviously, not even his own teammates! You think he would have learned his lesson from that last suspension. Ban him from the NHL, there's no place in hockey for trash like that!
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