Justified...

As you all know Matt Cooke, the NHL's most annoying player was booted from the Penguins 5 - 2 loss against the Rangers for an elbow to the head of Ranger's forward Ryan McDonagh. Given all the discussion as of late in regards to intention and past history, many were interested to see what Cooke would recieve for his latest in a long line of cheap, meaningless shots that only seem to injure people. Given that this is Cooke's sixth suspension, five of which have been for blows to the head or checking from behind, my gut was he would pay. Even the usually tight - lipped Henrik Zetterberg went on the record as saying he felt Cooke should get the rest of the season and the play - offs.

Well this afternoon after a closed door meeting with Colin Campbell, Cooke was suspended for the rest of the regular season as well as the first - round of the play - offs. With ten games remaining in the Penguins regular season, this amounts to no less than a fourteen game suspension and could be as many as seventeen games. I haven't had much nice to say about the NHL and their disciplinary practices as of late, but this one I will applaud. I can only hope that when he does something stupid again in the future, the suspensions grow exponentially.

What makes this somewhat ironic is that Cooke plays for the Pittsburgh Penguins who are owned by Mario Lemieux. About a month ago when the Pens and Islanders got into a gong show in what was attempts by the Islanders at retribution for a Max Talbot hit earlier in the year, Lemieux went on to say that if the NHL would allow this to happen, he was questioning whether or not he wanted to remain a part of the league. He later went public with what he saw as suitable punishments for head shots to not only the player themselves, but the organization also. Well Mario, isn't it ironic that the player who has almost single - handedly brought headshots to the forefront of the NHL plays for you. If I were Mario and I was so opposed to this type of crap, I would only see one option...release Cooke upon the conclusion of the season and try to convince every other GM in the league that this little twerp isn't worthy of a job in the NHL....case closed.

Sticking with the NHL, when are more players going to realize that visors are there for protection. I know that some guys still play with this unwritten code of toughness and honor but how many more players are going to be injured seriously before either more players choose to wear them or the NHL makes them mandatory. This comes in the aftermath of the Vancouver Canucks losing Manny Malholtra for the remainder of the season with an eye injury he suffered last week. That incident comes a couple of months after Canadiens defenseman James Wisniewski took a blast to the face and has left a serious scar on his cheekbone. I can only presume that Wisniewski was inches away from early retirement. What stings the most for Vancouver, and fans of Canadian based NHL teams is that despite the fact Malholtra had only thirty points, he brings a lot more to the NHL's best team than numbers alone. He is a gem in the face - off circle and one of the league's best penalty killers. We all know how important these two areas are to the game come April, May and June.

On the topic of NHL play - offs and the race for the final spots, I can not believe what I am about to say. I am somewhat hoping that the ugh.......Maple Leafs make the big dance. There...it's out, I said it. Not sure why but that's how I feel and as a Canadian we can never have too many teams in the play - off's.

Speaking of play - off's the Western Hockey League kicks off their second season this week. My pick to win the league???? Well after talking to some friends in Saskatoon it sounds like Brayden Schenn may have been what the Blades need to put them over the top. Saying that, as long as they get steady goaltending, I will take the Blades to oust the Portland Winterhawks in six.

What do I like best about this year's WHL Play -off's???? The fact that the Regina Pats once again failed to make it....another aspect of the fine stamp owner Brent Parker has put on this club. Hopefully, Chad Lang will soon be able to return this club to the state they were in prior to the Parker's buying the club. Don't get me wrong, I like Regina and genuinely respect the Pats as an organization as they are one of the oldest in Canada with a history of producing some great talent. But I know there are others who feel the same way; Brent Parker has really put this club back a few years.

The Riders have traded for return specialist Tristan Jackson. He will be effective when, and only when the scheme employed by the Riders special teams improves. Say what you want about Dominique Dorsey and Ryan Grice - Mullen...they may have struggled at times but their past tells us that they are more than capable of making the big play on special teams. I will stand strongly behind my belief that Jim Daley and his inability to adapt made these guys look worse than it needed to be. You watch, Dorsey will land somewhere and he will once again be a big time special teams player. I can only hope Craig Dickenson brings some youth and exuberance back to the special teams.

Other than that, not a whole lot making noise in the world of sports this weekend. A couple of questionable calls during the Madness that is March in NCAA basketball but in the end the right calls were made and didn't negatively effect the outcome of any games. Have a good one...