The National Hockey League came down hard on Pittsburgh Penguins' forward Matt Cooke for his elbow to the head of NY Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh during a recent game, suspending Cooke for the remainder of the regular season (ten games) plus the first round of the playoffs (at most another seven games).
Cooke has a lengthy history of cheap shots and dirty hits, and has been suspended four times previously in his career, though he was never suspended for the ugliest cheap shot of his career, waylaying Boston Bruins forward Marc Savard with a blindside elbow to the head which led to the latter's current post-concussion problems and putting his career in jeopardy.
This heavy-handed punishment was long overdue and justified, yet it's unlikely to be a deterrent to others of Cooke's ilk if the league fails to follow up with other serious punishments for players who take liberties against opponents with dangerous, dirty play.
For far too long the NHL has been more re...
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