Reaction to the Shawn Thornton Suspension

Today, NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan laid down the suspension for Bruins forward Shawn Thornton: a 15-game suspension. In my mind, this represents both a victory for those who want to preserve the image of the game, as well as send a message to the rest of the league.

This is a fair suspension, in my opinion. Thornton committed an act that is intolerable, regardless of events leading up to it, like James Neal's kneeing on Brad Marchand. Thornton attacked Orpik from behind, pulled him down and punched him on the ice, leaving him with a concussion.

This was a dangerous and malicious act of revenge and Thornton has been known to be an honorable player and stay away from dirty actions. He immediately knew of his actions while he was doing them. Unfortunately, we don't live in the 80s and 90s anywhere, where vigilant justice was expected. The NHL has tried to steer away from being untamed and lawless against forces that happen on the ice. We can't accept the idea that Thornton was doing his job and committing vengeance on Orpik for what he did earlier on Loui Eriksson.

For Brendan Shanahan, this is his longest suspension that he has ever issued in the regular season, topping the 10 games he gave to Patrick Kaleta earlier this season.

Shanahan said, "This cannot be described as a hockey play that went bad. Nor do we consider this a spontaneous reaction to an incident that just occurred. Rather it is our view that this is an act of retribution that occurred earlier in the game."

Shawn Thornton may be an honorable player but he wasn't in this particular game. I respect him a lot less for what he did. I'm sure he regrets what he has done and wish it didn't happen, but the fact of the matter is, he punched Orpik when he was defenseless and left him with a concussion. When you punch players who are defenseless, you are going to hear from the league and the officials. This 15-game suspension sends a message to players to remind themselves of what happens when the lines that shouldn't be crossed are crossed.

Thornton will most likely appeal the length, but I doubt it. Video evidence will likely keep him on 15 games. There's a chance he will get it reduced to perhaps 10 or so, but dangerous acts like this really show players what happens when acts of revenge get too violent. Thornton is a well-respected player and does do well as an enforcer, but when this kind of stuff happens, you wonder just how far people will go to protect their players. We saw the example here. Dangerous hits and dangerous acts in the league do get you an appointment with the Department of Player Safety.