OK, let me explain it slowly.
Everyone jumps on the Marchand-is-bad bandwagon but not a peep about when Tavares slew-foots Marchand.
This blatant bias against Marchand proves that all the whining about Marchand is more about being against him than the dangers of playing in the NHL.

Example from another thread:

1) Torres is a habitual offender and the league doesn't allow those hits anymore so the punishment is to be expected.

2) What's with the cheap shot at Marchand? That's the dumbest thing I've heard is a while. There are many players that have a worse record than March. Why not bash Steve Downey, Cody McLeod, Brandon Prust?

Marchand is an agitator and he is good at being hated. That's his job. He had 95 PIM with no game misconducts in 2014-15. At the same time he also scored 24 goals and had 42 pts in 77 games last year.

The other three above?
Downey 238 PIM 1 misconduct 14 G 28 pts
McLeod 191 " 1 " 7 G 12 pts
Prust 134 " 1 " 4 G 18 pts

Marchand had more goals and point than all three combined but Marchand is bad?
Oh, BTW, there were a total of 18 players with more PIMs than Marchand last year. 26 misconducts given out last year. March had zero.
2014-15 NHL Hockey Stats and League Leaders - Major Penalties - National Hockey League - ESPN

The #1 team last year with Game Misconducts was the Habs with 5! The Pens had 4. The Wild had 3. Boston (along with 10 other teams) had 2: Lucic and Bar kowski (Pelican won't let his name print???): Neither one is with the team this year.
2014-15 NHL Hockey Stats and League Leaders - Major Penalties - National Hockey League - ESPN

All that said, when he was asked how he feels about being booed, Marchand said "they don't boo nobodys" and smiled.

Joe, is your last name Marschand?
I'm starting to think you must be related to Brad... ;)

You keep quoting that no game misconduct last season but he was suspended and fined for his slew foot in January 2015.

I thought it was interesting that Brad was looking to go headhunting on Weise. Brad was anticipating that Weise would be cutting to the net with the puck and left his feet attempting (in my opinion) to deliver a head shot from the blind side that would have put the Hab's player out of commission. More than likely with a concussion. Karma's a beotch I guess. I hope he has a good long time off the ice recovering to think about that.

There is no question that he is a talented hockey player. The problem is that he is a liability for his team and the league. As was mentioned by someone else, he doesn't need to be that type of player, yet he is. Too bad for him and your Bruins.

Oh, I got it the first time. You seem to be pointing everywhere else but your guy. Your guy broke the rules and got caught. People smile because he also happens to be an assmunch (hole) on the ice. And for whatever reason he seems to be involved in this kind of thing more than others. Luckily, I don't care about the Bruins or their players, so if the Bradder is suspended for two games or twenty, I don't care. I my perfect world, the guy who causes injury to another with illegal stuff like that would sit out the same amount of time as the injured guy, AND pay the injured guy's salary.

If Brad's getting extra attention because he also happens to be a complete jerk on the ice, well, I guess he's getting what's coming to him. Sometimes it pays to be nice.

If your perfect world existed then Matt Cooke would have been thrown out of the league in 2010.

I agree, break the rules = get suspended. I know that March isn't a saint. My point is that there are far worse asshats out there and everyone here turns a blind eye. Hockey prejudice... You love to hate Marchand.

OBTW, It pays to be nice but there are many hockey players who make a very good living being agitators or enforcers. Haters gonna hate and Marchand makes good money because of it (and because unlike other agitators, he actually scores a lot of points).

And for the record: I am not related to Marchand. :)

In other news, I am surprised there was no chatter about the Zac Rinaldo hit the other night. He got a 5 min major/game misconduct but the league reviewed the hit and said there would be not supplemental disciplinary action.

I have wondered if he was going to be a liability because of his past problems. He claims he's changed. The NHL video of the finding said that the penalty was correct but the action didn't show intent and that past history is only considered only after the finding is that further punishment is needed.

Hey Joe

You might find some of Paul Stewart's articles & comments on the above & this whole subject of illegal & or dangerous hits.

Cheers
JB

JB, I read the article about the Rinaldo hit on 10/21. Did you see the NHL assessment video? I think that Stewart is prejudicial against Rinaldo and has him guilty until proven innocent. I admit I am worried about his past but watch the video.

Zac Rinaldo will not face suspension Video - NHL VideoCenter

The opposing player was facing his checker. Should have seen it coming.

Watching the check, Rinaldo didn't have his elbows up and his skates didn't leave the ice. It didn't appear that he was targeting the head to me.

Been a little busy with Blue Jays baseball. That is until last night!

More of Bradly's antics.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0BrJudfoZec" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Didn't look like a clean hit but the comments indicate there was shoulder to shoulder contact first.


Nice punch with the gloves on by our favorite boy! lol!

Fines for the hit and the gloves on punch.

Joe
Your right, everyone is against Marchand cause he's a cheap player and nobody complains when he gets cheap shots back cause basically - he deserves it.

Finn

I wondered how long it was going to take someone to throw another dig. You guys are slipping.
You should also complain that Marchand was a wimp for punching a guy 4 inches taller and 30 lbs heavier than him. What a weasel. Skated right up to his face and clocked him. How sneaky and underhanded.

Throw your gloves down and fight like a man, not a weasel...
No class but entertaining nonetheless.

Yeah, that's about the size of it. Changing the subject to what other players do is just dumb. If your guy breaks the rules and gets punished, then he's getting what he deserves. If some other guy breaks the rules and gets a different punishment, that doesn't mean your guy doesn't deserve to get punished. The two things aren't related at all. Of course, if your guy acts like a dickbag on the ice, then folks aren't going to complain too hard when he does get punished. Tough luck for the dickbag, but that's just the way life is.

Actually the above statement shows your total lack of understanding of the NHL. Every coach will tell you the same thing: they don't care if the game is called tight or loose as long as its the same for both sides. Likewise, when supplementary punishment is considered, the NHL always shows other events of similar circumstance to show perspective as to what is or isn't acceptable.
Go back to shuffleboard. SmileWavy

Video: Brad Marchand hits for contact with baseball-style goal | ProHockeyTalk

I was watching that game and saw that goal.
Was a beauty goal, eh?
He would be a complete player if he had a brain big enough to control those idiotic impulses he often has....

Yeah, I guess his value is not in winning the Lady Byng Award but rather getting under the skin of his opponents and then scoring while they are thinking about what he said or did. Maybe he isn't out of control but calculating where the line is that can't be crossed very often.

Tom Brady grew up idolizing Joe Montana who said "if you ain't cheating you ain't trying"
Joe Montana: If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying, so the Patriots are trying hard | ProFootballTalk

I guess Marchand has been caught "trying" a few times.

Just like Jarkko Ruutu?

Billy, how about Theo Fleury?

No, I understand the NHL just fine. You're whining because nobody is pointing how other guys are or are not punished by the NHL. Those incidents don't have anything to do with one another. And no matter what the NHL does, if we fans have some sympathy (or none) when your guy gets punished, that also has nothing to do with any other player or the NHL. I know you want to mash it all up in your head, but some of this stuff really doesn't have anything at all to do with the other stuff.

Eric you totally ignored my logical point. Maybe try badminton.

The imbalance in how the fines and suspensions are distributed to different players depends on their past history. Increasingly they are ramping up the fines for repeat offenders.
When they start leveling fines that really hit these guys in the pocketbook the problem players in the NHL will start to behave.
Theoren was indeed a pretty good little pest and also a very good hockey player. He certainly had his demons and wasn't the cleanest player on the ice but not comparable to BM (see what I did there?) in any way. TF's suspensions were centred around substance abuse and behavior linked to that substance abuse.
Maybe we can start to call BM Number 2 like on Star Trek?

billy, you get extra credit for the play on words.http://forums.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/clap.gif
Hmmm, personal bias wouldn't shade your opinion on this, would it? I predict that 20 years from now they will say the same about Marchand in comparison to whoever the newest instigator is.

Small clarification: the NHL does not take past history into account when deciding if an incident is worthy of supplemental punishment. They do take past history into account when deciding the punishment for an infraction. The coach wants the calls on the ice to be the same for everyone whether its slashing or a quick whistle when the puck is near the goalie.

Watch the video:
<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/G9iFbPxKuJw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So, I believe there is a fundamental difference of opinion here. I believe that agitators have a place in the NHL just like enforcers. Some of the most respected men in the NHL admired these guys.

Lets agree to condemn dangerous people that injure other players. We don't need Raffi Torres or Matt Cooke but lets stop making believe that these guys are supposed to be altar boys. The N in NHL is nasty and it takes guts to play in the league.

Agitators get paid good money to be the guy everyone loves to hate. SOME of them are a double threat because they are also excellent players. Say what you will but IMO "the little ball of hate" is worth every penny he makes (as long as he is on my side of the ice).

Nope. I didn't. You're whining about *fan reaction* to what the NHL does or does not do. That doesn't have anything to do with anything. Fans can complain or gloat as they see fit, and it has nothing at all to do with the NHL and how it does stuff. Not only that, the NHL's policy on punishment is not linear or transparent, and repeat troublemakers have ALWAYS gotten punished more heavily. Brad Marchand is a repeat troublemaker. As far as separating on-ice with after-action punishment, no duh coaches want it called equal. They'd like every day to be a new day, where their guy had never caused trouble before. But those guys in stripes are just as human as the rest of us, and if they are watching the troublemakers a little more closely, how can anyone NOT expect that?

I understand that you think you're making some sort of logical argument, but you're not. Your argument is based on false comparison and lack of internal knowledge on the subject. IOW, emotional.

Por_sha is a homer. Are you going to defend Marchand for last years stick between an opponent's legs trying to take out his nut sack? He's dirty. Sugar coat it anyway you'd like, enforcer, agitator, etc. He is a dirty player plain & simple.

The fact that he also has some pretty good hockey skills is besides the point. If he were only a goon, nobody would even care.

When did I talk about fan reaction? Fail.
You completely ignored stats I posted. Fail.
You didn't read where I said that supplimental punishment is not decided on the player's history but if they are found guilty then the amount of punishment is. Fail.
You ignore facts and attack the speaker. Final fail. Game misconduct. Now ignored.

Wasn't that Lucic?
And you're a bozo. :p

"Why isn't anyone complaining about..."

LOL, OK. I guess the "anyone" you were talking about there are now imaginary?

the agitator link brought back some fine NHL memories.
the Eddie Shack highlight was priceless.

The list in that video are all legends in their own right. Admired by some of the finest in NHL past and present. They made a living being hated. Now I wonder if I can collect on the hate being spewed at me for admiring Marchand...?

On a side note, did anyone see the Bruins/Rangers game yesterday? I didn't see the the Bruins winning and had them totally written off when the Rangers went up 3-2.

Yup, a classic comeback or a classic meltdown take your pick.

I think a little of both. The B's didn't lose heart when things looked bad and King Henry didn't look his best in the 3rd. Seems like Lundqvist is getting old or is he just having a bad year?

Unknown at this point, but he is slowing down. Remember when Brodeur began his slide? Good games, bad games, great saves , soft goals. It happens.

Wasn't Verbeek the "the little ball of hate"?

Just because Odip***** called BM that, doesn't mean you can.

Brad's on fire!!! He's a slayer off the ice too!!!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1449077273.jpg

Old news: 2013: Goodness, Gracious, Great Balls Of Hate! - Stanley Cup of Chowder

The media have used the term for years as well. This also reminds me how people love to hate players from the other team but are quiet about the agitators and enforcers on their own teams. Haters gonna hate.

Nope, nothing about fan reaction here. Nosiree....

Oh I don't hate him, karma always comes back around.

Homers always going to be homers will be just as apt to say for you.