NHL does not suspend Ryan Malone for hit on Campoli

In what is hopefully a start to a new standard on the suspensions for hits, Brendan Shanahan, the NHL’s new enforcement chief, articulated what many around the game have been calling for over a long period of time when he declined to suspend Ryan Malone.

Reasonableness.

It is impossible to play sports like hockey and football with the precision which some of the enforcement gurus would like to see.  When players are moving at opposite directions at high speeds, minor differences in speed alterations and body movements result in a fantasticly jarring hit to the shoulders becomes a vicious shot to the head.

Hopefully all leagues will start looking at these issues.  The idea of protecting against hits can be implemented a number of ways but punishing the result rather than the intent is always dangerous.