To kick or not to kick. . .

The NHL recently handed down a 5 game suspension to Ottawa Senator forward Martin Havlat for kicking Boston Bruins d-man Hal Gil during Saturday nights Sens/Bruins game.

When I saw this on the highlights I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It's not like Havlat was being viciously attacked or anything like that. Gil was doing what most defencemen are supposed to do when they have a pesky winger around their net- he was keeping him from getting to the spot he wanted to go. From what I saw in no way, shape or form was he doing that in a way that was any more violent then what any other d-man would do on a nightly basis.

And then you see Havlat, out of total frustration, stick out his skate and, blade out, kick Gil right in the goodies. Truly unbelievable if you ask me.

Unfortunately I've found that my dumbfoundedness has only increased over the past couple days as this story unfolds.

Yesterday the NHL hands down a decision to suspend Havlat for 5 games for the incident. A somewhat stiff penalty considering it will cost the Van Damme wannabe a tidy $60,000 in salary. I'm not sure though that the punishment fits the crime.

Was it not attempted assault with a potentially deadly weapon? Is a sharpened skate blade directed at another person's mid-section not a potentially dangerous act that could have caused serious damage to Gil's extra attacker? Should this not be looked at with a great deal more severity?

Many will say that it was unintentional or that it was a natural reaction of frustration by someone who was being pushed and shoved. In fact, I just read a quote from Havlat where he himself says that it was a natural reaction and that he was falling down and didn't want to hurt the guy. I think it's a bunch of balogne.

The fact is, Havlat's a repeat offender who seems to think that he's wearing skate guards all the time and his right foot apparently is magnetized to opposing players crotches whenever he's getting roughed up.

It's only a matter of time before this guy really loses it in the heat of battle and kicks hard enough to do some damage.

So suspend him for 5 games but maybe be a little more creative- make him play the next game without a cup and paint a big red target on the front of his pants and bring Al MacInnis out of retirement for one game. Better yet, make him play the next game with no skates and bare feet.

I think it's a gutless move by an immature player who does nothing to help promote the great game of hockey with cowardly acts like this.

If I'm Bryan Murray and John Muckler I'm on the phones finding the first agreeable trade for Havlat because I don't want pansy's like him on my hockey team. Ottawa's a potentially great team but I've got to agree with Hasek when he says that this team has to mature first before they're really able to contend.

Having players throwing tantrums like 5 year olds is not the mark of a winning team- despite an undefeated record. There's no place for clowns like Havlat who have no respect for their fellow players.