In the history of the NHL, there have always been players who push the envelope with their physical style of play. Players have understood that there’s a line in the sand in terms of over-the-top play, but it’s hardly a firm red line – more like a dotted line that moves from situation to situation. And in every Stanley Cup playoff tournament, those envelope-pushing players take it to a new level and don’t stop testing the line until the league punishes them sufficiently.
That’s exactly the type of player Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett is. And in Game 2 of the Cup final series against the Edmonton Oilers on Friday, Bennett once again found himself in the eye of the storm of a controversy because of his habit of knocking around opposing goaltenders.
In Game 1 of Florida’s second-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Bennett concussed Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz, knocking him out of the rest of the playoffs. And in Game 2 against the Oilers, Bennett was called for goalie interference on Stuart Skinner and assessed a two-minute minor penalty, in which Edmonton scored to take a 3-2 lead in a game the Panthers would eventually win in overtime. And in Game 1 of the series, the Oilers tried to get Bennett’s 12th goal of the playoffs called back because Edmonton believed Bennett had interfered with Skinner. In that instance, there was no judgment of goalie interference, and Bennett’s goal counted.
With those facts in mind, one of two things is true: either Bennett is the unluckiest player in the world who continues to be in the wrong area of the ice at the wrong time, or he’s a borderline-dirty player who the league needs to crack down on. And from this writer’s perspective, we’re going with the latter option. It’s no coincidence Bennett is regularly suspected of crossing the line. It’s what he does, and he’s rather good at it.
Now, here’s the rub: if the NHL isn’t going to properly police players like Bennett, why on earth should he change? And why would the Panthers want him to change? His approach is delivering the results his team is looking for, and he’s not getting suspended or even fined for his choices. Any player in a similar predicament would continue to do what he’s doing, until such time that the NHL’s department of player safety says “enough’s enough” and drops a one-or-two-game suspension on him.
Suspending Bennett may not change the way he plays, but if you suspend him now and he crosses the line again, that’s when you suspend him for three or four games. And if he keeps doing it after that, you suspend him even longer. Sooner or later, the risk/reward ratio will cause Bennett to change his ways, because no player wants to be on the sidelines, especially at this time of year.
Some Panthers fans will defend Bennett’s play, noting that he’s not a one-trick pony who is only on the ice to hurt opponents. And we’d agree with that. But you can’t convince us that, somehow, Bennett just happens to be in the middle of controversial plays numerous times during a post-season.
It’s a product of the approach he takes, and again, if the NHL isn’t going to take a strong stance and convey the message that Bennett has to change the way he plays, he’d be a fool to change on his own. There is no honor among players or self-policing at this point in the season. The bottom line is winning playoff games, and Bennett has been a huge factor in that regard.
When he becomes a UFA this summer, Bennett is going to be paid very handsomely, precisely because teams know his style of play is effective, and because it isn’t going to be outlawed by the league. But imagine, for a second, that Bennett was suspended after what he did in Game 2 Friday night. Suddenly, he might be seen as a detriment to winning – or at least, someone who couldn’t continue playing the way he plays. That would almost certainly bite into the raise he’s going to be looking for as a free agent. But as it stands, Bennett has nothing to worry about, as the NHL is tacitly endorsing his style of competing.
If it wanted to, the league could step in at any point during a controversial moment involving Bennett and drop the hammer of supplemental discipline on him. The league obviously doesn’t want him to change, and Bennett doesn’t want to change, so deja vu will be happening soon enough.
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