Max Pacioretty update
After a hard hit and unlucky break, Max Pacioretty was taken off the ice last night on a stretcher without moving. This was covered in a post somewhere between all the Tressel-gate posts, but just a quick update on how he's doing.
ESPN is saying that he has a concussion and he fractured his fourth cervical vertebra. I'm no doctor, so any MGoDocs out there? How serious is that neck injury? Seems like he should be able to play again (they say he was conscious, moving extremities, and talking last night at the hospital) but how long could this take?
As for Chara, he met with officials today and no word of punishment is out yet. Watching the hit, it sure doesn't seem dirty at all, just unfortunate.
Agreed. I watched the hit and it looked clean. I couldn't see any malicious intent just unlucky the hit took place at the no-glass/glass border.
According to this, there won't be a suspension or fine for Chara. I saw the replay, and I can't say definitively one way or the other that it was clean or dirty. I initial reaction was that it was clean, but highly unfortunate.
It wasn't malicious but it was super disrespectful. Chara knew where he was.
I'm a big Bruins fan and I think Chara should get a suspension for the hit. He's not a dirty player and I don't think he was trying to seriously injure Pacioretty but I do believe he knew what part of the rink was coming up and I think he wanted to send him into the partition.
I agree with this. It was a penalized play so it was not "clean" (meaning a legal) hit. I do not think he intended to hurt him but the push to the face was reckless given the circumstances and given that the player got hurt, Chara should sit IMO.
I have to disagree with you. Just because it was penalized does not in fact mean it was not a "clean" hit.
Refs in the NHL all too often give a penalty on how bad someone is hurt, and that is what I thought happened last night. Either that, or they tossed him so the game wouldn't devolve into an Islanders-type embarassment.
To me the hit looked clean, it just happened to occur in the wrong spot on the rink. I can't speculate as to whether or not Chara intended or could have know Pacorietty would have face planted in the way he did.
I agree if you simply are talking clean vs dirty hit. But I mean "not clean" in the sense that it was not a legal play. (1) it was interference which means it was a late hit, and (2) chara appears to have landed a blow or a push to the head (which may have been captured in the penalty).
I point that out to differentiate it from a truly clean hit where there is no penalty. In the terminology I am using there is (1) a legal play - should not be penalized, (2) an illegal play (calls for a penalty but nothing dirty about it and happens many times each game), and (3) a dirty play where there is intent to injure or very reckless play.
IMO, this play is clearly not in category (1), probably in category (2) but is close to category (3), not because he hit him into the boards but because of the follow though with the hand to the head. Similar to if chara hit him high with the hands pushing his head into the glass. It's not intent to injure but it's close to a reckless play.
My point is that if you are involved in a reckless play that leads to significant injury, you should sit a least a game or two.
is there a rule saying you can't check somebody at that part of the ice? if not, there should be no fine or suspension. just as chara knew where he was on the ice so should have pacioretty
March 10th, 2011 at 10:34 AM ^
Has nothing to do with that part of the ice. It was a late hit hence the interference call and he did get his hands up which played a role in where Max's head was.
Yea, he knew where he was at, on the ice trying to get the puck and not let him get by, because he was beat. You don't have that much time to think to say, hey I'm next to the bench and if I hit him his head is going to bounce of the partition, maybe i should let up. He was beat and he was trying to stop the guy. It was interference, and I don't think it should have been 5 and a game. It should have been a 2 minute penalty. It was a freak accident and nothing more. Even the Candiens players said the same thing.
Not a doctor (Just a med student) but fracturing C4 could be devastating or could be not a big deal (obviously in the context of breaking your neck). The fact that he's moving all limbs is a very good sign and means his spinal cord wasn't hit. Dependnding on where it broke (central part of the bone v part that sticks off) means recovery time varies, but if there is any chance it's near the cord he's done for probably a year. I would guess he's out at least till next season either way just because it's not something you want to mess with, especially when he's playing a full contact sport. Like I said, just a med student so any physicians out there feel free to chime in.
This med student agrees.
I think if he has movement in his extremities, then he will probably be okay in the long term. However, without any knowledge of the extent of the break, we can't say very much.
It was a really unfortunate incident that happened, but in watching the replays even a 5 and a game was too much. However I understand why the refs gave him the major - talk about a game getting out of hand if they didn't. From the start of the game the Bruins came out hitting the smaller, faster Habs and with the tone of the game the refs thought they had to get him out of there.
I hope all goes well in his recovery - seems like there is good hope he can recover fully as he was able to move his limbs.
It is kinda hard to say that he doesn't know where he is on the ice. I certainly don't believe he intended to injure though. Wishing Max well, Go Habs.
Knowing where you are can go both ways. I'm not trying defend Chara here, as I don't root for either team. I just don't see how people can say he knew where he was at. You don't have time to think about that stuff, especially in the NHL. You have an idea where your at, but your not going to think about a partition getting in the way of the guys head.
But you do know where you are. And NHL players are even more aware of it - as many of them are coming out and saying now. Chara did know what he was doing, and he had a good few strides toward the area. All-star d-men know where they are.
Habs fan so evidently boiled up to some degree; and I actually don't think Chara was trying to injure Patches (let alone break his neck). But he looks up, he thrusts his arm upwards into Patches' head and propels his whole body toward the boards. Plus he is a sore, petulant loser (always has been), and he has it out for Patches. But of course why wouldn't he do it, the league has backed him up...
Thanks at least that Max is OK. Couldn't give a toss about whether he comes back to play hockey, but hope he can walk and move normally.
Btw, I guessed the length of the suspension right last night...unfortunately...
"It's been an emotional day," Pacioretty told TSN. "I saw the video for the first time this morning. You see the hit, I've got a fractured vertebrae, I'm in [the] hospital and I thought the league would do something, a little something. I'm not talking a big number, I don't know, one game, two games, three games ... whatever, but something to show that it's not right."
I agree with him exactly. It wasn't a malicious hit, but it wasn't a perfectly legal one either, as the intereference penalty suggests. Chara needs to be held accountable for his actions in that case, and if that means it's somewhat punishing the result of the incident then fine, so be it. Chara and players need to be aware of that spot of boards as much as they need to be aware that they can't hit a guy from behind, or from the blindside in the open ice. Suspend him for a game or two, you might get some message across. Again, I think Chara is a clean player and there was no intent to injure or anything...but sometimes clean players do stupid shit. This is one of those cases.
Chara is clean like Ray Borque or Bob Gainey were clean: subtly dirty.
I'm positive he didn't set out to injure or even hurt Patches - just sting him a bit.
But the National Hypocrite League has blown it again. Even the most rock-headed Bruin fan would take a two-game suspension.
Ah well, a Wolverine is tougher than that. Good on Patches for speaking out. Go Blue!
March 10th, 2011 at 12:02 PM ^
This is really kitchy and dumb and guaranteed never to be read by anyone except some PR intern, but the Habs website has a place where you can send get well wishes to Max. I riffed about seeing him in West Quad when we were freshmen mostly because I didn't want to actually do work.