NHL leaves players at risk by ignoring headshot problem

Goaltender interference controversies will not diminish by substituting one subjective opinion from an officiating supervisor based in Toronto for another subjective opinion from a referee on the ice, but the peril of incurring brain trauma will persist as long as both the NHL and NHLPA mutually tolerate blows to the head — such as the one St. Louis’ Brayden Schenn laid on Boston’s unaware David Krejci on Wednesday.

You can argue Krejci, who looked down momentarily to move a puck out of the corner on his backhand, should have been aware he was in imminent danger. Clearly, he had placed himself in a vulnerable position. You can also believe, as did the Department of Player Safety in declining to prosecute Schenn, that the hit was unavoidable because of the Bruin’s body position.

Upon review, however, it certainly seems as if Schenn could have avoided a direct hit to Krejci’s head. But then, according to the rules adopted by the league and codified by the union, that wasn’t Schenn’s obligation. There is no rule in the book that turns primary contact with the head into an automatic penalty, let alone a suspendable offense.

There is little enough hitting in this new-era game. Physical intimidation has essentially gone the way of the wood stick. The absence of hitting and intimidation has sapped passion from the sport. Visceral hatred between rivals is a thing only of network promos. In the context of competition, it is no wonder the league isn’t in a hurry to criminalize hits such as the one Schenn laid on Krejci.

But with the long-term consequences of absorbing such blows accepted by all except medical science deniers and defendants in civil suits, it is a surprise the union hasn’t mounted up and led a crusade to change the rules in that direction. The players, after all, are the ones at risk, even if they are also the ones who perpetrate the offenses.

So goaltender interference issues get the headlines while headshots do not.

A heads-up here: Ilya Kovalchuk becomes an unrestricted free agent upon turning 35 on April 15 and does not have to wait until the pre-July 1 interview period to talk with NHL suitors. Kovalchuk can negotiate with clubs and reach an agreement in principle but cannot sign a contract until July 1.

The winger is in the second round of the KHL playoffs, his SKA team has 3-1 lead over Lokotomotiv.

You’re darn right I’m one of those get-off-my-lawn guys who believes a player’s impact on the standings is among the criteria that should be used in evaluating candidacies for the Hart Trophy, and I see nothing wrong with that.

Full disclosure: I no longer vote for league awards, but if I did, Taylor Hall, Nathan MacKinnon, Claude Giroux and Anze Kopitar would be at the top of my list for MVP and, with two weeks to go, in rank yet to be determined.

And by the way: Of all the MVP awards in hockey, baseball, basketball and football, the most extraordinary remains the 1953-54 Hart Trophy awarded to Al Rollins — the Chicago goaltender whose team finished in last place in the six-team league at 12-47-7, 37 points behind the fifth-place Rangers, while he had the league’s poorest goals-against average at 3.21. (save percentages not available, thanks NHL.com).

Of course, the Black Hawks did allow 29 goals in losing four straight in late November while Collins was sidelined with the chicken pox, the last two by scores of 9-0 and 9-4 with 1949-50 Calder winner Jack Gelineau filling in, so the voters must have felt Chicago might have gone winless without their goaltender.

ESPN recently published its list of the 20 most dominant athletes of the past 20 years while pretending the selection was done by some sort of mathematical process. No NHL player was included on the list.

A check of my abacus indicates Alex Ovechkin has scored 48.28 percent more goals than runner-up Sidney Crosby (602-402) in the 13 years they have been in the league, the largest such differential over a similar time period in NHL history.

That probably qualifies as dominant.

Wayne Gretzky scored at a 39.22 percent higher pace than Mike Gartner (749-538) from 1979-92 for the second-largest differential.

This is on Page 68 of the NHL rulebook — it is Rule 42 that covers charging:

“A minor or major penalty shall be imposed on any player who skates or jumps into, or charges an opponent in any manner.”

It continues:

“Charging shall mean the actions of a player who, as a result of distance traveled, shall violently check an opponent in any manner. A ‘charge’ may be the result of a check into the boards, into the goal frame, or in open ice.”

Let’s review: Skates or jumps into.

And yet, in addition to deciding against suspending Schenn for his hit, the Department of Player Safety seemed to rewrite the charging rule entirely with its conclusion that even the original charging minor had not been warranted because the Blues’ player had both skates on the ice when he made contact.

What?

Here, perhaps the ultimate man without a country whose number has not been retired: Chris Chelios, No. 24 in Montreal for 309 points (72-237) in 402 games, seven seasons, one Norris Trophy and one Cup; No. 7 in Chicago for 487 points (92-395) in 664 games, nine seasons and two Norris Trophies; and No. 24 in Detroit for 152 points (21-131) in 578 games, seven seasons and two Cups.

Gary Bettman believes the coaches’ challenge for goaltender interference should be used only “when it’s a completely blown call.”

Apparently because in the commissioner’s world, there is such a thing as partially blown call.