From: leunggm@odin.control.utoronto.ca (Gary Leung)
Subject: Re: POTVIN and HIS STICK
Organization: University of Toronto, Systems Control Group
Lines: 45

In article <2346575PS380.9.0@sscl.uwo.ca> 2346575PS380@sscl.uwo.ca writes:
>Dino getting shots in front of the net, he should expect it.  This is playoff
>hockey where anything goes. You lose one game in the regular season, and it's
>not so bad. You lose a game in the playoffs and it's a difficult thing to
>overcome.  I've watched hockey (and played it too) for a number of years and
>I haven't seen one post-season game where the forward in front of the net 
>has not finished without any bruises on the back of his leg.  The Leafs are 
>not doing a good job in clearing the net and Potvin has been forced to take
>matters into his own hands.  I remember when Cicarelli used to play for the
>London Knights (OHL), he always was a nuisance in front of the net and the 
>goalies took exception to this.  He also complained (in this morning's paper)
>about what happened last night, but to me, it's a lot of bellyaching. His 
>team is up 2-0 and he complains about being whacked...I wonder what would
>happen if he tried to do the same thing in front of Billy Smith or a younger
>Ron Hextall? Seems Dino would need two artifical legs.  Dino should take it 
>as part of the game and thank his lucky stars that he's in the playoffs and
>has a good chance to go the finals.


Well, I agree that if you're going to stand in front of the net,
that you should expect to get hit and hacked at. In general, you
should expect to finish the game with some bruises. However,
there is a fine line between hacking at a guy (causing some pain
and discomfort) and blatantly attempting to injure another
player. Felix Potvin, IMO, crossed that line on Wednesday. That
two hander on Ciccarelli was way out of line. I lost a lot of
respect for Potvin because of that. It showed an immaturity. He
did not slash at Ciccarelli to simply try to remove him from the
slot area (a legal position for Dino to be in). Instead, he
slashed in an attempt to injure. It was out of shear frustration. As a
Leaf supporter (just a supporter, I'm not a Leaf fan really), I
was very disappointed.

You're right in mentioning Billy Smith and Ron Hextall (at least
in his Philly days). They both crossed that same line at times and
for that reason, many fans (and players) disliked them (that's
why their names always comes up as examples when we talk about
these issues). Let's hope that Felix doesn't do that again. I'd
hate to see anyone (even Dino --- although I admit I don't like
him very much) get seriously hurt from such careless (but
intentional) use of the stick.

Gary


