Dirty Deeds, Done Dirt Cheap...

by IRockTheRed on Apr 2, 2010 10:21 AM EDT

I did a more-or-less frame-by-frame breakdown of the Armstrong hit on Perreault last night. There is no question in my mind whatsoever that it was a dirty hit, and Armstrong needs a suspension, if the Mike Green hit earlier this year deserved one, whether it was called on the ice or not.

Also, the Zebras in question need to be disciplined for NOT calling this. See below the jump for the frame-by-frame and discussion.

1) Here we have Armstrong lining Perreault up. They appear to be about 6-7' apart. Perreault has possession of the puck (it's behind the "You Make the Call" banner).

2) Armstrong closes in, still in a low stance.

3) Both of Armstrong's hands are still on his stick as he closes.

4) Still two-handed grip...

5) Note Armstrong's right arm coming up already, still a couple of feet away from Perreault. His hand has left the stick. Time on the video is 0:40.

6) Definitely holding the stick with only one hand now, but the arm is still low.

7) Note the arm coming up into Perreault's face:

8) KABONG. Looks like fist to jaw is the first contact. That's a roughing penalty right there. The arm is extended.

9) Wicked follow-through ya got there, Colby...

10) Note the elbow now hitting Perreault in the side of the head.

11) More elbow...

12) Gee, his elbow's right in Perreault's ear. And you aren't supposed to put anything sharper in there, right? And look - neither of Armstrong's feet are on the ice. Wow.

13) Look at Armstrong fly. Who knew Perreault was so strong?

14) Here's another angle showing Armstrong's... arm.

15) And another, closing in...

16) WHAM!

via i858.photobucket.com

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What I don’t understand is why Armstrong decided to throw his right elbow. If you watch the play unfold, he could have buried MP with a clean shoulder to the chest if he had maintained his established skating lane. Instead, he tried to clip his head with his elbow without ever attempting to make a clean check, and takes himself out of the play in the process. It seems like he actually went out of his way to make a dirty play instead of a clean one.

Just an all around bad hockey play. Dirty, and ineffective.

I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.

by iwearstripes on Apr 2, 2010 11:07 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

It seems like he actually went out of his way to make a dirty play instead of a clean one.

Exactly. Couldn’t have said it better myself. So I won’t try.

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 2, 2010 12:03 PM EDT up reply actions

From what I can see there, Armstrong managed to commit three minor penalties and a head shot in flow of play there. The minors are roughing, elbowing and charging (he did leave his feet). That it was to the head adds in the stuff from the new rule (which is in effect, supposedly).

That he didn’t get anything for this is shameful, because it means either none of the officials saw it, or they decided it was “boys will be boys”.

It actually looked like they were going to be letting a lot go when they let Ersk get away with a minor for roughing early on. Sure Armstrong played it up some, but Erskine got him good in the beginning, and bloodied his nose. I guess he decided that he could take liberties with MP85 and the refs decided he could too…

Let's go Caps!

by MikeL-Pivonka on Apr 2, 2010 11:10 AM EDT reply actions

I may be wrong, but I don’t think the new rule (hits to the head from behind or the side while backchecking or applying lateral pressure) applies to this hit at all. However, the “has always existed” elbowing rule certainly applies.

by GusDaMan on Apr 2, 2010 11:40 AM EDT up reply actions

That he didn’t get anything for this is shameful, because it means either none of the officials saw it, or they decided it was "boys will be boys".

I think this may have been a situation where none of the officials felt they had a good enough view of the play to make the correct call. The low official’s view of the player making the check is obstructed by Perreault’s body. If you watch the video clip, Armstrong, MP, and the low referee are in a straight line, with the puck carrier between he and the offending player. That’s about the worst positioning you can have on the body contact, since MP’s body obstructs the official’s view of the contact.

The low linesman may or may not have a decent view of the hit, around the time of contact 3 players skate between the puck carrier and the linesman at the point of contact. Moreover, the linesman can’t call a minor or double minor penalty, they can only advise the referee to call a major penalty. Without a great view of the play, asking a linesman to call a major is a pretty tall order, and I’m not sure a major penalty would have been warranted here anyway.

The high referee is almost at the far blue line, so he’s 125 feet away. His primary responsibility is looking for obstruction in the neutral zone. He probably had the best view of any of the on ice officials I can spot, but at that speed, and at his distance from the play, and given the fact that the play on the puck isn’t his primary responsibility; its not unreasonable to suspect he could have missed it.

I suspect the other linesman is near the boards on the penalty box side, probably near the blue line, but I can’t see him in the vids, and can’t tell what he may have seen.

I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.

by iwearstripes on Apr 2, 2010 11:46 AM EDT up reply actions 5 recs

You’re pretty smart. . . for a ref. :)

Nah, just kidding. Great explanation.

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 2, 2010 12:09 PM EDT up reply actions

Ha. You’ll see me in men’s league… I brutalize refs that blow calls in my games. When a ref blows a call in men’s league, its usually because he’s lazy or incompetent, not because he’s properly positioned for a play that occurs in an unfortunate location on the rink.

I am a hockey fan first, and a Caps fan second.

by iwearstripes on Apr 2, 2010 1:51 PM EDT up reply actions

This isn’t a charge. Armstrong’s feet were both on the ice when he made impact with Perrault, as the video captures above clearly show. If your feet leave the ice after a hit as a result of the impact, that’s inconsequential – it happens all the time.

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 2, 2010 12:08 PM EDT up reply actions

I think his leaving his feet was coincidental, the elbow is so intentional it should’ve been a major…if Perrault acted like he needed help getting off the ice it would have been a game misconduct.

I think they need video review of penalties for reasons like this. With only 2 refs on the ice I could see them missing details like this. I think if you give the refs and only the refs some amount of discretion to use the video replay it would result in fewer missed calls. I think most refs would rather get the call right in the end.

Suspend Colin Campbell!

by snowburnt on Apr 2, 2010 12:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Huge difference between leaving your feet as a result of contact and to deliver contact.

by FFSEnough on Apr 3, 2010 10:33 AM EDT up reply actions

Great work.

2 games?

by Bushwood Bushwhacker on Apr 2, 2010 11:58 AM EDT reply actions

If Green (first-time offender) got 3, this deserves at least that.

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 2, 2010 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions

Deserves? yes.

Will he get it? No

Suspend Colin Campbell!

by snowburnt on Apr 2, 2010 12:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Yea, it felt a lot like the Green elbow to me, but with little less actual contact. This seemed to be more of a glancing blow. Not sure if that “officially” is taken into consideration. It’s likely a wheel-o-justice situation. Anything from 0-4 games wouldn’t surprise me.

by Bushwood Bushwhacker on Apr 2, 2010 2:28 PM EDT up reply actions

Green’s elbow didn’t actually hit the guy either, he just had his arm raised.

Suspend Colin Campbell!

by snowburnt on Apr 4, 2010 7:28 AM EDT up reply actions

Hooray!

by Bushwood Bushwhacker on Apr 2, 2010 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions

I’ve seen the Wheel of Justice enough this season. No infraction on-ice for it, no suspension. He’ll get the $1,000 Downie fine. I have no faith in the system anymore, nor in its arbitrators.

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by winterion on Apr 2, 2010 12:08 PM EDT reply actions

Great Post

A couple comments:

1. In your first vid-cap, you state that they’re about 6’-7’ apart. They’re actually almost twice that. The faceoff circles have a
radius of 15’, and MP is at the dot and Armstrong is at the edge of the circle. If anything, the increased distance makes your point stronger, because it shows that Armstrong actually had a moment to think about what he was doing, whereas if he were only 6-7’ away, he could say it was just a gut reaction.

2. The fact that Armstrong’s feet came off the ice after the hit is irrelevant. Guys are knocked up in the air all the time from the force of a hit (see almost every hit delivered by Clutterbuck, Dustin Brown or Nicklas Kronwall). What matters are where your feet are at the point of impact. Armstrong likely left his feet after the hit because of the ridiculously awkward way he tried to hit MP. This wasn’t a charge, it was a clear case of elbowing, or roughing, if you want to call what he did “a punching motion.”

3. After watching the NHL’s video on what’s legal and what isn’t with regard to head-shots, this hit should definitely be illegal, but not under the new rules, since it’s not a “blindside” hit. This is just garden-variety elbowing, albeit a particularly egregious case. This certainly doesn’t fall under the “Stevens-Lindros” exemption to the head-shot rule, since MP had his head up the whole way and tried to get out of the way, only to be clocked upside the head by Armstrong’s elbow.

In a world that makes sense, Armstrong gets at least 3 games for this. This is worse than Green’s hit on Frolik just on the merits of the hit itself, and the visuals of it – a big, physical player predating on someone much smaller – make it much worse in my opinion.

However, this is the NHL – they’ll goon it up somehow.

Again, really great post. I imagine that getting all of these vidcaps must have taken some time; I’m impressed you got this up so quickly!

There's a fine line between arrogance and ignorance and only I manage to erase that line.

by D'ohboy on Apr 2, 2010 12:22 PM EDT reply actions

I agree with your comments on leaving your feet, you can do it on the tail end of a hit…it’s coincidental with the hit. Ovie does it all the time.

Leaving your skates is a problem when you do it going into the hit, it’s much more dangerous, uncontrolled and violent.

Suspend Colin Campbell!

by snowburnt on Apr 2, 2010 12:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Just heard Hradek on NHL Live say he’d suspend him for two. Also won’t be surprised if it’s nothing.

"The Caps fan doesn't say, 'is the glass half full' or 'is the glass half empty'. He wonders when the glass is going to spill."

by gfcaps fan on Apr 2, 2010 12:47 PM EDT reply actions

We were at the game and were baffled as to why Perrault suddenly bent backwards then turned his head awkwardly as he fell. The video was replayed—major “Refs you suck” ensued-and yes I let my son chant it with me (fandom piss-of-edness won over my normal “not a word we use” rule), but the video angle was from the back. We could see the end result with elbow and forearm most definitely up and in contact with MP’s head, but your great video breakdown shows the initial punch. Dirty, dirty, dirty. That hit had better be reviewed. And a suspension should be the result.

by capsyoungguns on Apr 2, 2010 1:21 PM EDT reply actions