As my Dad and I watched the game on TV, the main camera was behind the near boards and we initially had an obscured view of the play. So as Brandon Bollig checked Adam Pardy hard, and saw the glass panel come off, I immediately thought about those thunderous dunks in basketball that shatter the backboard. Thankfully the panel didn't splinter into pieces, and no players or fans were hurt.
It probably looked terrible to some of the Jets, at first as a scrum formed quickly, and they put a hand to Bollig's face. But I'm glad a fight didn't ensue. Players probably all realized in short order that it was a good clean check: no harm, no foul. Even Bollig looked worried, as Pardy was hunched over into the stands, and extended a hand to help him up.
Kudos, in particular, to Pardy for keeping his cool all the way. He, too, must've felt it was a legal hit. Two boneheads in the stands, one of whom pried his helmet off and another dumped her beer on him, could've triggered a melee. Imagine an enraged hockey player stomping in the stands with his skates.
"I don't know what happened to my stick, either," Pardy said. "It got lost in the crowd somewhere, too. Just a little insult to the injury, I guess. It was a tough night for all of us. It was tough enough to get put through the glass, but then to get a beer thrown on my head, too, it wasn't a good thing."
"We have spoken to those involved in the incident with an opposing player late in our home game last night at the United Center," the Blackhawks said in a statement on Thursday. "The individuals were immediately ejected from the arena to preserve the safety of everyone in attendance, including other fans, players and officials. We have also been in communication with the Winnipeg Jets and the NHL to convey our organization's apologies."Reference: Blackhawks apologize after incident.
What a class organization our beloved team is part of.
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
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