Max Lapierre is a Joke

So when the Sharks and Blues played Tuesday night, it was a matchup of undefeated teams on national television. It had the makings for a marquee game, or at least as much as one that doesn’t include any of the major Eastern markets can get. Instead, it turned into a horror show after about 5 minutes. Because the Blues Maxim Lapierre decided to finish a check on the Sharks Dan Boyle that he had absolutely no business making. Watch for yourself:

That play resulted in 20 PIM for Lapierre, which included a game misconduct. Today, Lapierre was given a 5 game suspension. I can understand why Shanahan gave him 5, but I think most hockey fans were expecting more.

Lapierre, of course, is the latest dirty player to be given time off to think about how he plays the game. Dirty, stupid plays like this have been the hallmark of Lapierre’s career. Only two games before this one against the Sharks, Lapierre hit Chicago’s Andrew Shaw from behind into the boards, earning himself a two-minute boarding penalty. And then there’s this, the last time Lapierre was suspended, for hitting the Sharks’ Scott Nichol from behind into the boards. It’s a similar play, and it sure is ironic that it’s the Sharks again.

I cannot agree more with Ray Ferraro. “This is absolute garbage.” Ferraro, very rightfully so, tears Lapierre apart. My favorite: “He thinks it’s funny. I think the way he plays is funny.” Lapierre got a 4 game suspension for that hit. You’ll notice another similarity: Lapierre goes and hides behind the officials. Perhaps the only thing that makes plays like these worse is not owning up to them. You can see Andrew Desjardins go after Lapierre right after the hit. You can also see Lapierre doing the ‘what did I do?’ Lapierre is a joke.  In both plays, there is absolutely no reason to make that hit. These are the kind of plays that do not belong in the game, the kind of hits we have to get rid of, and the kind of hits that just keep happening.

To wit, TWO nights later, Cody McLeod of the Avalanche makes a similar play, only 2 minutes into their game against the Red Wings, driving Niklas Kronwall from behind into the boards.

Like Boyle, Kronwall was taken off on a stretcher. Like Lapierre, McLeod was given an in-person hearing, meaning his suspension can exceed 5 games. After the uproar of the Lapierre hit, how the hell did McLeod not realize what he was doing? And how the hell are these hits still part of the game. You have cheap shot artists like Lapierre and McLeod taking out all-world players like Boyle and Kronwall, who both will be in the Olympic discussion for their respective countries if recovered. There is absolutely no reason garbage plays like this should still be in the game. And like Ferraro, I’m gonna stop now cause I’m losing my temper.