Death. Taxes. Tom Wilson getting suspended.
The regular season has not even started yet and Washington Capitals’ forward Tom Wilson can expect to miss a couple of games after his check on St. Louis Blues‘ forward Oskar Sundqvist. Sundqvist had to be helped off the ice by teammates.
Wilson was ejected after the hit and new reports are coming in that Wilson was offered an in-person hearing for the incident.
As we all know, this isn’t the first time a hit from Wilson has been questioned. This also wouldn’t be the first time Wilson was suspended in the preseason.
The date and time of the hearing is TBD, according to the NHL Player Safety account on Twitter.
Washington’s Tom Wilson has been offered an in-person hearing for an Illegal Check to the Head on St. Louis’ Oskar Sundqvist. Date and time TBD.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) October 1, 2018
Fans on social media debated about the illegal check. Some say that this is the way hockey used to be played, and to keep your heads up. Others pointed out that we loved when Scott Stevens did it, so why is it any different now?
https://twitter.com/KGesterling_FPC/status/1046730648692686848
Others want Tom Wilson to retire from professional hockey and to never lace up skates again.
https://twitter.com/MatBurnz/status/1046621883100266496
The hit will certainly be debated by hockey fans, especially when the punishment is revealed. Either way, the Washington Capitals expressed support for Wilson.
The Caps sympathized with Sundqvist but indicated that the onus was on him to not cut into the center with the puck. Capitals players expressed their support to NBC Sports Washington.
“It sucks the guy got hurt, at the same time, you can’t be cutting across the middle,” Devante Smith-Pelly said. “I don’t care if it’s preseason or the middle of the season. That play’s not exactly the safest.”
https://twitter.com/offclockpodcast/status/1046737860701941760
True, Sundqvist did enter the zone with the puck and cut right across the trolley tracks. In any level of hockey, you’re taught to avoid cutting right into the center with the puck. Wilson was coming in on Sundqvist on the opposite side and got leveled.
After firing the puck on net, Wilson immediately connected with Sundqvist. The timing was alright in the hit, but the Department of Player Safety will be looking to see the connection with the head.
Wilson may be labeled as ‘dirty’ by some fans, but he isn’t viewed that way in the locker room. “Obviously live it looked painful, but that’s how [Wilson] plays and guys have to know when he’s out there,” Nic Dowd said. “It’s a personnel thing. I think Tom, he’s a clean player. I don’t think he’s out there to hurt anybody.”
As Wilson is a repeat offender, how many games do you think he’ll have to miss because of the hit?
