It’s that ol’ debate again. Goonery. Thuggery. The Code. To protect your team-mates.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzZvG5O9Rg0[/youtube]

That video has caused controversy and sparked debate, as Boston’s Shawn Thornton scruffed Brooks Orpik of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and pummeled him on the ice, earning himself a 15 game suspension, offering flashbacks to the Todd Bertuzzi/Steve Moore incident that ended Moore’s career. But is what Thornton did that bad? Well yeah it is, but it’s not like Orpik didn’t deserved it.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvteW6mvasA[/youtube]

This was earlier in the game. Brooks Orpik cheap shotting new Bruin Loui Eriksson. Which is what you could say what triggered what Thornton did to Orpik. Orpik didn’t get suspended, even though he cheap shotted a member of the opposing team, even though it’s as dirty, if not dirtier than what Thornton did, and therein lies the problem. Cheap shot artists.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhnptY29ZZM[/youtube]

Steve Moore cheap shotting Markus Naslund, and after declining fights from Canucks Brad May, Sean Pronger, Jarkko Ruutu and Todd Bertuzzi. Bertuzzi took it upon himself and got revenge on Moore for what he did to Naslund three weeks earlier. Was what Bertuzzi did right? No. However, if Steve Moore didn’t cheap shot Markus Naslund, or stood up for his actions and copped the beating he deserved, the incident wouldn’t of happened, and that’s the same with Orpik and Thornton.

If Brooks Orpik had of gotten into a fight or two, and taken his beating from the Bruins, then Shawn Thornton would not of gone after Orpik the way he did. The NHL is trying to stop headshots, and yet let’s Orpik get away with hitting Eriksson the way he did. There’s a simple solution to all this. Stop the cheap shots. Get the deliberate cheap hits out of the game, and ugly incidents like Thornton/Orpik will cease to exist.

Some people don’t understand ‘the code’, but there are some hockey players who believe in it, and will follow it down to the last letter. Hits won’t leave the game. Headshots won’t leave the game, (well, unless hockey becomes non-contact, and even then accidental headshots will probably happen). The best way to go after this, is target those who live by the cheap shot. You get rid of the cheap shot, you get rid of the ugly incidents. It’s that simple NHL, it’s that simple.