04/18/24
January 09, 2006
Karma is a bitch: Marchment blows out knee trying to knee Allison.
That karma was a long time coming. If I recall, Marchment has been one of the dirtier players in the NHL for an awfully long time.. On a vaguely related note, while checking to see how long he was in the league, according to his ESPN page, he was drafted by Phoenix in 1987. Strange that they don't write Winnipeg, isn't it?
posted by blarp at 02:02 PM on January 09, 2006
YYM, see 'Marchment's season in doubt'. I was also assuming some prior knowledge of Marchment's rosy character and above-board track record.
posted by garfield at 02:07 PM on January 09, 2006
Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy...well, maybe Clod Lemeiux...
posted by MeatSaber at 02:43 PM on January 09, 2006
Full Disclosure: I'm a Flames fan. Marchment has a well deserved reputation. After having watched him play many games this year he always reminds me of a rookie who is far to focused on making the big hit rather than playing sound defense. That said I'll take issue with Garfield's posting. He was not trying to knee Allision. Watching replays it was clear. Allision tried to get out of the way and they hit knee on knee. No doubt it's a dangerous move on Merchant's part, but it was a poor call by the ref which was probably more based on the name on the back of the jersey than what actually happened on the ice. The exact same thing could happen to anyone trying the big open ice hit when the intended targets steps out of the way at the last minute. My guess is that Marchant will have the surgery and then will announce his retirement during the off season. Perhaps I'll still bitter about the absurd officiating during the last Flames game, but I sincerely doubt any player actually tries to knee another. Even Marchment.
posted by camcanuck at 02:44 PM on January 09, 2006
In the old NHL Marchment was a "hard hitting, stay-at-home" type of D-man. With the new NHL and its emphasis on skill we can see what an untalented piece of garbage he is (see also Dam McGillis) Dirty knee on knee hits have to go. (I'm gonna make friends with this one) Darcy Tucker on Mike Peca, no excuse. Even worse Peca comes back from the Tucker hit and delievers almost exactly the same hit on some kid on the Rangers (Jamie Lundemark, I believe) This shit has no place in my game.
posted by HATER 187 at 02:54 PM on January 09, 2006
Cam, I'd say it was vintage Marchment, with a finely aged cheddar and a sprig of grapes. Classic, really. I had to watch him in blue and white in 03-04. Made me cringe. His reputation is well-deserved. I give him credit for having the guts to try and lay claim to that bit of ice, but it was foolish bid. BTW, Regehr's got quite the backhand, eh? I think it should've been a 3 point game on Friday night. Shoulda, coulda, woulda...dammit.
posted by garfield at 02:56 PM on January 09, 2006
he was drafted by Phoenix in 1987. Strange that they don't write Winnipeg, isn't it? Lazy database design on ESPN's part: the team names aren't normalized out into another table so they can change over time. </geekery>
posted by yerfatma at 03:05 PM on January 09, 2006
ESPN sucks anyway. They chose not continue the NHL contract, why, to make room for more poker? Real athletes there. So does the new CBA make for a more Canada friendly NHL? Even though I am U.S. citizen, I just don't think it is right for a desert like Pheonix to have an ice hockey team.
posted by njsk8r20 at 03:20 PM on January 09, 2006
Garfied, yes it was classic Marchment. No doubt about that. I'm torn on the subject though (pardon the pun) because the only way to remove the kneeing issue it to make the big open ice hits illegal. I also find it someone hypcritcal that many people don't see the comparisions to wide receivers in football. No one complains a bit when those guys go up for a pass and end up with a trip in an ambulance to the local hospital. It's part of the game. How is cutting down a wide receiver when he's up the air (and totally defenseless) any different than laying the huge hit on forward with his head down? Both plays could result in nothing more than an muscle ache the next morning, but both plays could also result in serious injury. Yet no one ever complains about how it was a dirty hit in football. The safety doesn't end up with a bad reputation. I've never really understood why in hockey it's different. Chalk it up to the whole 'honor' mentality in hockey which perhaps isn't there in football. BTW, Regehr's got quite the backhand, eh? Yeah for all the time they spent trying the feed Dion Phaneuf for the big shot it's somewhat ironic don't you think? Yet another great game that didn't feature a bunch of goals. It's a shame we won't see the buds here again for 2 or 3 years.
posted by camcanuck at 03:32 PM on January 09, 2006
cam, i disagree. people talk about "dirty" hits in football all the time. often an open field hit on a quarterback will be called dirty, even when in-fact it was only a split-second late and it only looks dirty in the super slo-mo that they like to show it on TV. i think a lot of the hits on wide receivers aren't called dirty because they are legal and therefore are just a great play. also, as fast as football players are today, they are moving nowhere near as fast as hockey players, so the potential for injury is less on those open-field hits.
posted by DudeDykstra at 03:47 PM on January 09, 2006
Lazy database design on ESPN's part: the team names aren't normalized out into another table so they can change over time. More geekery: When an institution changes names, it would be confusing to use the old name and new name based on the time period being discussed. It's hard enough to get people to embrace the new name. Nearly 20 years after my school became the University of North Texas, I still see media references to "North Texas State."
posted by rcade at 03:48 PM on January 09, 2006
Dudedykstra, I agree people often refer to dirty hits on QB's (see Carson Palmer this weekend for an exmaple of what you said about super slow-mo replays). While you say a receiver is legal to hit why is a puck carrier not a legal hit as well? The hit that Marchment attempted on Allision was while he had the puck. Hockey rules say Allision is completely fair game. I'll conceed the speed issue, but it's pretty rare to see a hockey player getting hit while he is 2 feet or 3 feet up in the air. I'd say that more than makes up for the speed difference. I still don't see much of a difference other fan / player opinion.
posted by camcanuck at 05:41 PM on January 09, 2006
Not everyone who tries that is a dirty player. When the Blues were good enough to make it far enough in the playoffs to lose to the Red Wings, Cris Pronger once tried to blast Steve Yzerman's hurt knee, but in the spirit of bad karma, ended up blowing out his knee instead.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 07:42 PM on January 09, 2006
There is a difference between an errant hip check and an intentional "knee sweep" like what Marchment has been famous for executing on the top forwards of the league. If you review the whole Todd Berttruzi incident you can trace it's beginning to a similar tactic from Moore. It is save for the " two handed stick to the back of the head " ala Marty Mcsorley/Donald Brashear, the dirtiest kind of play in hockey. It is unusual when it doesn't blow out a knee.
posted by gronir_ hitrops at 10:03 PM on January 09, 2006
If you review the whole Todd Berttruzi incident you can trace it's beginning to a similar tactic from Moore. No, it wasn't a knee-sweep that Moore did on Naslund (which is what led to the revenge motive). It was a shoulder/upper-arm/elbow to the head as Naslund was leaning forward to corral a loose puck. I've always thought Marchment was a dirty player. I definitely didn't like it when the Leafs picked him up, and was quite happy to see him get tossed aside back in August.
posted by grum@work at 12:08 AM on January 10, 2006
No, it wasn't a knee-sweep that Moore did on Naslund (which is what led to the revenge motive). It was a shoulder/upper-arm/elbow to the head as Naslund was leaning forward to corral a loose puck. Dig a little deeper, remember these guys carry grudges for years. Moore was a front runner to become the new Marchment. There was definately a history. You never forget the guy who tried to ruin your career!
posted by gronir_ hitrops at 09:46 PM on January 10, 2006
posted by garfield at 11:13 AM on January 12, 2006
Thats nice but I can't find the article you are trying to talk about...