Boston Bruins: Brad Marchand Comments On Crosby Low Hit

Brad Marchand and Sidney Crosby are both from Nova Scotia, Canada. While the two players have both found success at all levels of hockey, including the NHL with each hoisting the Stanley Cups already, there is clearly a double standard involved in certain disciplinary situations that the NHL deals with.

Sidney Crosby was the first overall draft pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. The clear number one pick out of the Rimouski Oceanic, Crosby excelled for his junior club while also showing an international pedigree at the World Junior Championships. In 2004, Sidney Crosby made it to the finals of his first World Junior Championships, eventually losing to the United States, claiming the silver medal for his country. In 2005, however, Canada and Sidney Crosby had the last laugh as Canada won the gold medal. After being drafted, Sidney Crosby has never failed to entertain, or meet expectation as he has consistently been one of the best point scorers in the entire world during his NHL career. In 2009, Sidney Crosby tasted NHL post-season victory for the first time, winning the Stanley Cup after losing in the Stanley Cup Finals just one year earlier.

Brad Marchand‘s journey was not exactly the same as Sidney Crosby‘s. After spending four years in the QMJHL split between the Moncton Wildcats, Val-D’Or Foreurs, and Halifax Mooseheads, Brad Marchand was drafted with the 71st overall draft pick in the third round of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. Despite all of his time spent in different cities and on different teams, Marchand showed that he still had what it took to excel, and he even played in two World Junior Championships in 2007 and 2008, winning gold both times. Marchand was never the poster-boy in a draft, or for his team the way Crosby is, but that doesn’t take away from the player that Brad Marchand is.

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In his NHL career, Brad Marchand has been suspended twice for low-hits that were deemed reckless and unsafe. Based on recent events involving Sidney Crosby, it’s clear that reputation is clearly a major factor in the NHL’s disciplinary system.

During The Pittsburgh Penguins matinee game on Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres, Sidney Crosby crouched down and flipped Sabres’ forward Nicolas Deslauriers in a way that should have resulted in a suspension. The Penguins official Twitter page even referenced the hit in a GIF that was tweeted out with the caption “Sometimes when you try to hit Sidney Crosby, you get flipped…”

Sometimes when you try to hit Sidney Crosby, you get flipped... pic.twitter.com/4ioiunATZE
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 21, 2016

What’s interesting about the hit is that there was no penalty on the play, and because Nicolas Deslauriers wasn’t injured, the NHL seems keen on just allowing this whole situation to disappear without mention.