“The Slash” Renews Rivalry Between The Canadiens and The Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators could now also be without Mark Stone, as Stone was injured when P.K. Subban hit him with a vile slash to the wrist. While Last night fans only speculated to the extent of Stone’s injury, Today Stone’s injury status has been updated, he has suffered a micro-facture to his wrist and his playoff status is unknown.

The slash has been highly debated among both fans and pundits. My colleague Jack already discussed the elements of last night’s game, the rivalry, the press conference aftermath and discussed some of the player reaction.

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I have my own opinion on the slash itself as well as the resulting reaction from fans. Much of the fan reaction I read reaffirmed what I believed I would read before I even signed in to Twitter to check up on the incident. There were plenty of comments I disagreed with by fans of both teams.

I am of the belief that Subban’s slash was awful. Stone did not have the puck and Subban had no reason to slash him. Should he be suspended? Should it be a major penalty? I really don’t know. For all the people debating these things you need to analyze a certain aspect of hockey; the officiating in the NHL is a joke. We are talking about a sport where fans champion “letting them play”.

No other sport sees players allowed to punch each other in the face after play stops without major repercussions. No other sport seems to just stop calling penalties when it hits playoff time or a certain point in the game. Hockey is a violent sport. Subban’s play was violent. It was not what some would deem “a hockey play”, but it was in many ways.

Intent vs Embellishment

Players slash each other constantly. Players do gutless things to each other all the time. Do I believe Subban is a dirty player? No. Do I believe what he did was dirty? Absolutely. Things happen in the heat of the moment. I have seen people argue that Subban intentionally injured Stone. I agree and disagree with that statement.

I believe Subban intentionally injured Stone in regards to the fact that he slashed him hard. I do not believe that Subban targeted his exposed wrist intentionally. This is where I disagree with some of the Senators faithful. Some fans were saying Subban targeted his exposed wrist. After watching the slash many times I do not believe that was the case. Many of the Senators faithful already hated Subban, now it is amplified.

The other real interesting thing I have seen discussed is the notion that Stone was embellishing the slash. That issue seems to have been addressed today as Stone’s fracture is being reported. I have a question for the people who thought this… Do you choose to ignore the portion of the telecast where he came back out and was in visible discomfort? Did you not see how limited his play was? DID YOU SEE THE SLASH? It hurts when someone takes a baseball/axe/sword swing at your arm with a hockey stick.

I was actually flabberghasted at the stupidity I witnessed on my Facebook newsfeed from Canadiens fans. The man has a fractured wrist. The reports today seem to reaffirm the fact that Stone did not “embellish”, the fact that people thought that in the first place is shocking.

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The ultimate winner in this situation? The NHL.

This series was already heated due to the playoff series in 2013. This series could be even more intense than the last as the most polarizing player on the Canadiens just took out the Ottawa Senators’ potential Rookie Of The Year.

Coach Cameron essentially confirmed the team will be seeking retribution. Subban has no apologies. We have quite the series on our hands. This series will have great ratings and be great for the business of hockey. Senators fans are hoping they will come out on top of this series, Montreal fans the opposite. At the end of the day, the NHL benefits regardless of who wins.

Next: P.K. Subban Looks Unprofessional Following Slash On Stone