Simon Gagne has a history of concussion problems, and in Game 3 against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night, he took a shot to the head from Chris Kunitz.
The really quick video (don't blink or you'll miss it):
Here's a GIF that shows the really ugly side of the hit. Not for the queasy.
It's the exact definition what Rule 48 hoped to ban last year in the aftermath of Matt Cooke's hit on another concussion-prone star, Marc Savard of the Bruins. Blindside elbow to the head. Disgusting and unacceptable.
Of course, this is the NHL, officiating is a crap shoot, and Kunitz was only out for two minutes. You've gotta expect that he'll get suspended for this one after the fact, although it'll be interesting to see for how long since Gagne is still in the game. No injury means minor suspension, right? Even if it's obviously worthy of a suspension?
This wasn't the only questionable hit in the game, though. In the first period, Steve Downie absolutely plastered Ben Lovejoy behind the net,
Downie's hit was reminiscent of the one he laid on Dean McAmmond in 2007, after which he was suspended by the NHL for 25 games. Ah, reputation. We'll see where each of these hits land on the Wheel of Justice, but in your opinion, which is worse?