The NHL yesterday suspended Bruins D Marty McSorley for
the final 23 games of the regular season for a high-sticking
incident which injured Canucks LW Donald Brashear on Monday.
The suspension, the most severe in NHL history, also
includes the playoffs if the Bruins make the postseason.
Also, McSorley will have to meet with NHL Commissioner Gary
Bettman if he desires to play next year (THE DAILY).
Bettman: "The credibility of the sport isn't defined by the
incident. It's defined by the response. Our response was
very harsh and very appropriate" (USA TODAY, 2/24).
LEAGUE IN DAMAGE CONTROL: USA TODAY's Kevin Allen
writes that NHL officials "clearly are frustrated at the
negative attention the sport is receiving from one player's
act." Bettman: "To judge the game or what the players think
is right or wrong on the basis of this one incident is very
unfair" (USA TODAY, 2/24). In Toronto, Mike Zeisberger
writes that the NHL "sent a stern message to any players who
leave the sport with a black eye" (TORONTO SUN, 2/24). The
NATIONAL POST's Roy MacGregor writes that the NHL "moved as
quickly as possible to defuse what has become its worst
imaginable nightmare" (NATIONAL POST, 2/24). ESPN.com's Al
Morganti calls the suspension a "very strong message. ...
This is the league's boldest verdict in response to on-ice
problems" (ESPN.com, 2/23).
BUT IS IT A SYSTEMIC PROBLEM? In Dallas, Kevin
Blackistone writes that McSorley's suspension "does not
prove the league's sincerity at keeping physical play from
becoming violent" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 2/24). On "World
News Tonight," ABC's John Makenzie reported that "the
dilemma for hockey is how to keep players like McSorley
under control without losing some of the violence many fans
find appealing. Today, many players said this latest and
longest suspension was fitting" (ABC, 2/23). In Providence,
Jim Donaldson: "The NHL still is a game that not only
condones a certain amount of unnecessary violence, but
actively encourages it" (PROVIDENCE JOURNAL, 2/24). In
Montreal, Red Fisher, noting McSorley's reputation as a
enforcer in the league, writes that McSorley is "as much a
product of the NHL's grand marketing scheme as the stuff it
sells across the counter" (Montreal GAZETTE, 2/24).
WAS SUSPENSION TOO SOFT? In Boston, Karen Guregian
writes that the NHL "needed to send out a stronger message
... McSorley should be forced to sit out a year. With no
pay" (BOSTON HERALD, 2/24). In Chicago, Brian Hanley: "It
should have been a lifetime ban, plain and simple" (CHICAGO
SUN-TIMES, 2/24). Stars C Mike Modano: "You've got to talk
years with that kind of thing. You're not talking games.
You're talking a two- or three-year ban" (DETROIT FREE
PRESS, 2/24). A Toronto GLOBE & MAIL editorial states that
the NHL "should make an entire team pay for their teammates'
intemperate actions" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/24). In
Toronto, Allan Maki writes that if the NHL "was truly
serious about reducing the number of vicious incidents ...
it would have suspended head coach Pat Burns and fined the
Boston Bruins" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/24).
