Lucic Didn't Do It

Milan Lucic has been suspended for one whole game by the league, even after he already unfairly missed his final shift. This is wrong, if you are to believe bald head, bald-faced Claude Julien. The only thing Claude Julien doesn't say in the end of the interview is:

"Please don't take away our amnesty to hooking calls. We prefer our reputation as clean-playing victims (I learned that from Philly). Please?"

He does, however, make up whole lot of other stuff here:

CBC notes:

"Lapierre was sporting a welt under his right eye after the game that perfectly matched the shape of the frame of a stick, but Bruins coach Claude Julien insisted afterward that Lucic hit Lapierre in the helmet with his glove, not his stick."

The RDS feed isn't available to me on the internet, but I can tell you though the glove led, the stick came in full follow through on Lapierre's face. Lapierre is no angel, nor would I have him be one. But, I was of the understanding that the league didn't want angels. However, what they do want is a cut-back in dangerous and ill-advised hits to the head. Julien's bald-faced lying apart, I think the league must consider this. If Schneider cross-checked Lucic to the head beforehand, that must obviously be considered too.

All hits to the head have to be frowned upon, premeditated or not, inconvenient for your team or not. Julien deserves a little reminder of that from the spokesman for the initiative among the players. Then maybe he can put his petulance aside for two minutes.

The Lucic suspension was about as much as the league could muster for a playoff series, I suppose. But it clearly isn't enough if they hope to abolish tat kind of behaviour in the game.

It's truly shameful that the league is not more committed to this goal.