There’s no question that Ryane Clowe reached out his stick, from the San Jose bench, and impacted live play. There’s no question that, had any of the on-ice officials seen it — it’s a bit staggering that they didn’t — it would have been a penalty. Former NHL referee Rob Shick was in the elevator after the game and immediately pointed out the rule in question, number 56.2, which reads, in part: “A minor penalty shall be imposed on any identifiable player on the players’ bench or penalty bench who, by means of his stick or his body, interferes with the movements of the puck or any opponent on the ice during the progress of the play.” A bench minor is given if the players is unidentifiable.
The question is, will the league give any supplemental discipline to Clowe? Can it? We’ll find out today. Clowe probably didn’t help himself with his “Who, me?” act after the game, in which he claimed, to questioning reporters, no knowledge of the incident. What do you think should happen?
Rules for Blog Commenting
Repeated violations of the blog rules will result in site bans, commensurate with the nature and number of offenses.
Please flag any comments that violate the site rules for moderation. For immediate problems regarding problematic posts, please email zdooley@lakings.com.