Buffalo Sabres 2011 Goal Horn
What We Learned From The Milan Lucic-Ryan Miller Incident
As a Bruins fan, I was actually starting to wonder how the hockey world would handle the first disciplinary incident of the Brendan Shanahan era involving a man of the Spoked B. I didn't have to wait long to find out because of an incident, both literal and figurative, between Milan Lucic and Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller during a game on Nov. 12.Near the end of the first period, Lucic got the puck and started on a breakaway, building up speed as he entered the Buffalo zone. Miller, as the only thing standing between Lucic and the potential of hearing the Bruins goal horn again, decided that he would attempt to stop Lucic's breakaway by venturing far out of the crease. (Perhaps he was trying to emulate a similar moment when Tuukka Rask stopped Montreal's Max Pacioretty on a breakaway, but Rask took to the ice and slid to trip up Pacioretty.)Lucic wasn't able to stop or change course in time, so he slammed into Miller, taking off his mask in the process. Miller landed on the ice on his behind, swiping at Lucic with his goal stick on the way there, and while a little scrum ensued between various Bruins and Sabres, and Lucic got a two-minute charging penalty, that was the extent of the immediate aftermath.(You can watch the incident again here.)Miller played the rest of the first and all of the second period before being swapped for backup goalie Jhonas Enroth in the third. After the game, it was reported that he had suffered a concussion (that Bruins team doctors diagnosed, according to Sabres beat writer Mike Harrington on Twitter) and he is now considered day-to-day. I do sincerely hope he feels better soon. Concussions are nasty and can be difficult to heal from, so I hope to see Miller between the pipes again soon.Because of this, Shanahan decided to have a hearing with Lucic on Nov. 14 and review the tapes to see if any disciplinary action was needed. His final decision was to not suspend Lucic or punish him further.Now that the final official decision has been made, and this matter is basically closed, let's take a look at five lessons we've learned from it.One: There are actually times when Shanahan will review the tapes, talk to an involved party and decide not to suspend. After the blitz of suspensions, especially in preseason, that led to jokes of varying humor levels about the extent of them, this is interesting to learn.Two: This decision has inevitably led to charges of Boston favoritism among many fans, especially on social media. While I can understand how the decision might look to some, what Shanahan says goes. Besides, if there really was Boston favoritism, why wasn't Vancouver's Alexandre Burrows penalized in any way for biting Patrice Bergeron's fingers during the Stanley Cup Finals? (Oh, right. Inconclusive evidence...that you can still see right here in slow-motion.) Yes, that incident was during the Colin Campbell era, and Gregory Campbell is Colin's son, but why would supposed favoritism work against his son's team? Also, since some fans have seen fit to make comparisons of this incident and the Marc Savard-Matt Cooke incident, let's put it to bed: Cooke didn't receive even a measly two-minute penalty for that hit. Meanwhile, Savard's lengthy, accomplished playing career could be over.Three: Goaltenders are not fair game just because they step out of the blue paint, as per Rule 42.1. That's the official line, so no more claiming that goalies are the same, offensively, as a forward or defenseman if they happen to be out of the crease.Four: As a recent journalism graduate, it's interesting to me to see how some people handle the media in various ways. Miller made sure, after Nov. 12th's game, to get on the record with the Buffalo News as calling Lucic " a piece of [expletive]." He added "Fifty pounds on me, and he runs me like that? It's unbelievable. Everyone in this city see him as a big, tough, solid player. I respected him for how hard he plays. That was gutless. Gutless. Piece of [expletive]."Following Shanahan's decision, Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff added fuel to the fire by predicting a steep decline down a slippery slope: "Your goaltender can play the puck, we can run them over, we can hurt them, and all you get is a two minute minor penalty. You can concuss the goaltender, make no attempt to get out of the way, and it's fair game on goaltenders." I sincerely don't think this is going to happen. Furthermore, Shanahan himself called comments like Ruff's "irresponsible."Five: Jhonas Enroth is really, really good between the pipes. He has a 6-0-0 record so far this season when he starts, a 1.76 GAA and a .942 save percentage. He'll be an able starter while Miller recovers, that's for sure.Now that we've learned these lessons, let's keep them in mind for Boston and Buffalo's next meeting, which happens to be on Nov. 23 in Buffalo. It should prove to be an interesting night.Sources:Author unknown, "Alex Burrows bites Patrice Bergeron..., " YouTube.Author unknown, "Jhonas Enroth Game Log, " Yahoo Sports.Author unknown, "Lucic Checks Miller, " BostonBruinsTV.Author unknown, "Shanahan: Sabres reaction to Lucic decision 'irresponsible, '" TSN.com.Mike Halford, "Ruff addresses Miller's status..., " ProHockeyTalk.Mike Harrington, "Memo to Boston fans..., " Twitter.Dan Rosen, "Shanahan cites lack of intent in not suspending Lucic, " NHL.com.John Vogl, "Defending champions bowl over Sabres, " Buffalo News.By Emma Harger - I am a recent college graduate with a degree in journalism. I was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. I love writing and have been doing so ever since I was very young. I have experience writing about many...
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