Boarding & Automatic Misconduct for Injury to Head/Face
Given the controversial call today during the game, leading to Quinn Hughes being ejected, I am curious to understand how the specific aspect of the boarding rule is assessed.
During the broadcast, the section 41.5 was specifically cited as the (most likely) explanation for the ejection of Hughes.
From my perspective there are two interesting points:
- Major vs Minor
It is the refs discretion to decide that the “violence” of the impact was extreme enough to justify a major. Here I already have issue with the level of the hit and low force with which Norris was directed to the boards.
- The Condition of Injury
Is it really sufficient for a player to disappear down a tunnel, clutching his face, to deem injury is caused? Norris returns moments later with effectively no visible damage. For all intents and purposes this cannot seriously be viewed as a hit “leading to injury of the head or face” can it?
All this to say, if this call would be used as precedent, it seems incredibly easy to bait star defensemen into game misconduct penalties in the future.
The photos are shitty screen grabs (mobile) of Norris when he returned to the bench.