Is the National Hockey League doing enough to protect its superstars, including Connor McDavid? The answer from the Edmonton Oilers players is a resounding no.
Number 97 was suspended three games for a double check against Connor Garland of the Vancouver Canucks in the final moments of last Saturday’s game.
Harassed on the ice by Garland, McDavid had enough and decided to take justice into his own hands.
“I guess we don’t care if the best players in the league take part in the games. I’m going to stick to that,” said Leon Draisaitl, a little bitterly.
“It’s amazing to me that we’re going to be suspended for three games,” said defender Mattias Ekholm.
In Draisaitl’s eyes, this situation could have been avoided if the officials had called a penalty when Garland attacked the star player.
“Connor doesn’t want to bicker with Garland. There are 12 seconds left on the clock. We try to score,” he pleaded.
-Is the NHL’s fault?
Veteran Corey Perry pushed the thinking further: the National League should imitate other major professional leagues to ensure that star players are not subjected to abusive treatment on the ice.
“Why don’t we protect superstars? Every other league does it. Patrick Mahomes, LeBron James, you can go down the list…”
Before being suspended, McDavid was building up a lot of frustration. Last Wednesday, he got away with it by hitting Marcus Johansson of the Minnesota Wild in the face.
McDavid escapes without penalty on a questionable hit –
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