League officials taking firm stance on slashing
Injuries, abundance of calls necessitated action this season.
When slash after slash broke one of Johnny Gaudreau’s fingers, he called it part of the game.
The Calgary Flames winger known as “Johnny Hockey” is one of the NHL’s most marketable players, so broken bones should be a problem.
Slashing has become such a regular element in NHL games that it necessitated 791 minor penalties last season with countless more going uncalled. Gaudreau’s broken finger and Marc Methot’s lacerated pinkie brought enough attention to the issue that the league is taking a stronger stand on flagrant slashing this season to cut down on injuries and obstruction.
“I think it’s tough for the refs to make those calls in games: You don’t really know how bad a slash is,” said Gaudreau, who sat out more than two weeks after surgery to repair a fractured finger on his left hand. “But if they can harp down or look at it a little more closely, I think it might cause a little less injuries. Guys won’t be missing substantial time. I think it’d be huge.”
It was impossible to ignore slashing when Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby sliced Methot’s finger open during a Penguins-Ottawa Senators game back in March, forcing the defenseman to miss three weeks. No penalty was called, and Crosby didn’t receive any discipline.
After members of the league’s competition committee recommended a closer look at slashing, officials have been instructed that it’s OK to call it more this season. NHL director of officiating Stephen Walkom said the rise in slashing over the past decade came about after the stricter enforcement of hooking and holding following the 2004-05 lockout with players using new tactics to slow the game down.
“Players started slashing in between the hands and on the hands, and the whacking became hacking became something that became the norm in the game,” Walkom said. “It’s time to have a stronger enforcement to let the players know what they can and can’t do. If you’re going to be whacking a player’s hands 6, 8 feet from the puck, there’s a good chance that you’re going to be penalized if it’s seen by the officials on the ice.”
So many slashing penalties were called in the first few preseason games this year that it was somewhat comical. Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere understands slashing but said he doesn’t know if it should be a penalty when no one knows why the whistle was blown.
Walkom sent a note reminding referees that the intent was to focus on slashes around the hands, not every time a player’s stick hits an opponent in the heavily-padded pants. Slashing at players’ hands will not only be an area of emphasis on the ice but also from the league office.
Dodgers: Manager Dave Roberts remained frustrated and irritated with outfielder Yasiel Puig for getting thrown out attempting to steal second to end Saturday’s 2-1 loss to the Giants. Puig was benched Sunday. “It’s important that the guys I write in the lineup, I can trust them,” Roberts said. “Whatever message he gets from it, I’m putting the guys out there that I think give us the best chance to win today.”
Reds: Cincinnati reached the 90-loss mark for the third straight year. The Reds lost 98 games in 2015 and 94 last year. It’s the first time they’ve had three straight 90-loss seasons since 1930-34.
Blue Jays: Toronto drew 3,203,886 in 81 home dates, currently the highest AL total. The Yankees are at 2.9 million with seven games left.
Braves: Ender Inciarte had three singles to give him 197 hits, the most for Atlanta since Andruw Jones’ 199 in 2000. The last Braves player to reach 200 hits was Marquis Grissom with 207 in 1996.
Royals: Ian Kennedy (4-13) allowed five runs in 5⅓ innings Sunday as he lost his seventh straight decision. The right-hander hasn’t won since July 26 at Detroit.