While working out this morning, I was watching Sportsnet news. They had a hockey crew on there talking about the Cup finals, when former NHL goon and current Sportsnet hockey analyst Nick Kypreos started ranting about how the Edmonton players should warn the Hurricanes that their goalie is next and maybe after their goalie, someone like Erik Cole. (Cole is already out for the season, so perhaps he said or meant Eric Staal.) This kind of brain-dead comment just shows that while Kypreos may have changed from a player to a TV hockey analyst, he's still a goon at heart. The injury to Roloson was completely accidental; nobody ran their goalie, so Edmonton shouldn't be looking for revenge.
I'm not a fan of fighting in hockey (or lacrosse), but I will admit that there are some cases where it's… well, necessary is too strong; perhaps understandable, to some extent. If someone really runs your goalie, or hits your star player with a cheap shot, then I can see sending Tie Domi or your team's equivalent out to have a conversation with him. Note that "cheap shot" here is important — if someone hits your star player with a clean hit, no revenge is warranted, even if that hit ends his season. I also think that whatever revenge may be warranted should only apply to the current game - once that game is over, the opportunity has passed. This whole "so-and-so hit our star player last game, so the next time our teams play, we're going after him" is moronic and childish. For a prime example of how this is a bad idea, just reread the previous sentence as "Steve Moore hit Markus Naslund last game, so we're going after him". Todd Bertuzzi kept the promise that his team made, and ended Moore's career by breaking his neck. (Note for the record that Moore's hit on Naslund was clean.) For all Bertuzzi's apologizing and crying during press conferences and stuff, he meant it, and would do it again in a heartbeat, though perhaps not from behind next time. I was disappointed in Gary Bettman for lifting his suspension during the lockout, and embarrassed to have him on the ice for Team Canada at the Olympics. I think his suspension for such a blatant cheap shot should be as long as Moore's injury keeps him out - if Moore's career is over, then so should Bertuzzi's. He's a great player, but nobody should be allowed to get away with that kind of crap.
I'm thinking Nick Kypreos would disagree with that.
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