Crosscheck wrote:
schooner44 wrote:
You can call it what you want but it was absolutely NOT a head shot. There is a difference between a head shot and someone's head getting hit in the process of a hit. Kaleta did not intentionally go for his head...he was going after a solid body check and as he turned his upper body, he put his head at the same spot Kaleta's shoulder was going.
Ok, so you don't think he should have gotten anything for it?
Argue the game misconduct all you want, but that shot fully warranted the 4 minutes he got.
I didn't see the Sabres bench up in arms about the penalty, I guess you had a better view than they did

It was an open ice hit and deserved no penalty. This hit was no different than Brian Campbell's hit on RJ Umburgher a few years back. Umbergher wasn't looking just like Kulikov wasn't looking. Do you honestly think that Umbergher's head didn't get hit during that collision? It did and that's why his ass got knocked out.
That being said, there are different rules now than a few years back (or even 20 years back when hockey wasn't over taken by pansy ass European players) however Kaleta had no control over the fact that Kulikov's head got hit. If the same hit was put on Kulikov by someone other than Kaleta, I seriously doubt there would have been a penalty. Refs are always looking for a penalty to call on guys like Kaleta. Kaleta is not a perfect player and does throw some hits that disgust me (like when he leaves his feet) but this hit was a good open ice hit.