The Day We've Been Waiting For

[EBondo 233]

As per Darren Dreger and Bob McKenzie a few minutes ago, Colin Campbell is stepping down as NHL disciplinarian. Brendan Shanahan is expected to take over.

Holy moly.

[Krev 86]

TSN: http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=367566

Yeeesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.

[RiSeOnFiRe 0]

FINALLYYY!!!!!!!

[Hradsky 1]

!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bravada 442 0]

Grass isn't always greener on the other side. I'll wait to see if Daly and Bettman actually let Shanahan have some teeth on his discipline reviews. If not, things will be no better here.

[JR Boucicaut 3801]

Grass isn't always greener on the other side. I'll wait to see if Daly and Bettman actually let Shanahan have some teeth on his discipline reviews. If not, things will be no better here.

Exactly - I like Shanny - don't make me have to hate him.

[Law Goalie 147]

All around Tyler Dellow's office, his fellow associates were just interrupted by a loud, distinctive burst of laughter.

Well-earned, Shanny. We may actually get to see disciplinary rulings that reflect and influence the way the game is played - you know, kind of like discipline?

[Chadd 916]

This gives me hope for the NHL. Given all the publicity issues Campbell has had this year, I'm not entirely surprised. As much as I dislike him, allowing him to step down at the end of the season was the most graceful way to handle it.

[camhockey16 5]

hopefully shanny doesn't have kids in the minor league system that will make it to the nhl

[Joshison 1]

Good now people can stop crying about Campbell's son being on the Bruins every time something happens.

[Chadd 916]

Good now people can stop crying about Campbell's son being on the Bruins every time something happens.

And maybe you can stop bitching about it in damn near every topic.

[Joshison 1]

Sorry but cams cheap shot was unnecessary, and so weren't the comments in countless threads. I understand you don't agree with the guy but you don't need to discredit the Bruins.

[Chadd 916]

Sorry but cams cheap shot was unnecessary, and so weren't the comments in countless threads. I understand you don't agree with the guy but you don't need to discredit the Bruins.

Campbell has a documented history of being a douche in regards to how officials called penalties against his son, prior to playing for Boston, among his other issues. His comment was valid from that perspective, despite not really being that relevant or funny. Just get over the fact that there's a marginal relationship to the Bruins and park your fanhood. This isn't a debate, by the way.

[camhockey16 5]

i didn't mean it as a shot against the bruins btw - i meant campbell has gotten a lot of grief since his son plays in the nhl - im hoping the same won't happen to shanny and didn't know if he had any kids in the system

[wrangler 157]

Glad to see him go, and the "overhaul" mentioned in the article sure doesn't sound like a bad thing. Anyone know what we can expect from Shanahan?

[ibeck 38]

Saw this on facebook, gave me a good laugh:

"Colin Campbell is stepping down as head of NHL discipline. In a related story, the number of Boston Bruin suspensions is expected to rise dramatically in the next NHL season."

[DarkStar50 679]

A. You won't have to worry about Shanahan's kid in the NHL any time soon. Next season he will be playing squirt hockey.

B. We'll know what to expect from him once he makes his first ruling.

[_RH_ 1]

Interesting that such a big fighter would be the next choice by the NHL. It seems that they're trying to remove that sort of thing from the game (be it good or bad), yet they appoint someone with nearly twice as many PIM as points to this position.

[TeamHonda401 54]

Interesting that such a big fighter would be the next choice by the NHL. It seems that they're trying to remove that sort of thing from the game (be it good or bad), yet they appoint someone with nearly twice as many PIM as points to this position.

So it should be a prerequisite for the job to win at least one Lady Bing trophy? The type of player that Shanny was has no affect on how good of a job he will do in an office. Only time will tell.

[Law Goalie 147]

I'd argue that his career as a highly successful scorer and a highly physical player gives him an ideal breadth of experience, and that his penalty minutes gave him plenty of time to reflect on discipline in hockey.

[Jason Harris 31]

It's possible, LG, but the biggest function of the league disciplinarian is to protect players from getting injured unnecessarily. One way to do that is to begin giving longer suspensions for the hits from behind that lead to concussions. While we obviously have to give Shanny the benefit of the doubt until he's made his first few rulings, my concern is he may be too much a part of the culture to affect real change.

[Too Old 1]

Too bad Buttman doesn't follow him out the door...

[hunterphfr 12]

Not soon enough.

[Law Goalie 147]

It's possible, LG, but the biggest function of the league disciplinarian is to protect players from getting injured unnecessarily. One way to do that is to begin giving longer suspensions for the hits from behind that lead to concussions. While we obviously have to give Shanny the benefit of the doubt until he's made his first few rulings, my concern is he may be too much a part of the culture to affect real change.

Granted, his involvement in the culture could work (and be interpreted) both ways. That said, his role in the development program over the last few years suggests that he's not worried about tinkering with the game. It may be, similarly, that his first few rulings are made more or less in line with Campbell's, and he exerts his own influence gradually.

I'd also point out that, no matter what Campbell may have said, the disciplinarian's rulings are a very small part of player protection. Given how ineffectual deterrents are, I'd say that the main goal of the rulings is to reinforce (rather than simply enforce) the education of the players, teams, refs, and fans as to what sportsmanlike conduct is in the game.

Something as simple (and difficult) as convincing the players to hit through centre-mass to 'knock the wind out of the guy,' and making sure that kind of impact is rewarded by teams, lauded by broadcasters, and applauded by fans, would probably do far more to lower the frequency and severity of concussions than, say, the imposition of a handful of huge suspensions. If Shanahan does change the culture around head injuries, the vast majority of it will be quietly informal, establishing an agenda on both sides of the glass. Protocols and rulings are great tools, but you can't renovate your house with only a level and a sledgehammer.

[ibeck 38]

Too bad Buttman doesn't follow him out the door...

Like that will happen anytime soon, he has done a marvelous job for the owners, not necessarily the game. (IMO) He just made the league an extra 85 million dollars to. (25 mill from Phoenix and 60 mill as a "relocation fee" from True North"