Old Time Hockey Is Officially Dead
"Just try to ignore him, I guess".
Just. Try. To. Ignore. Him. I. Guess.
So that's what the game has come to? That's how the boys are policing the game on the ice? Don Cherry is rolling in his grave right now. (He's still alive. Sorry for the scare).
Jamie Benn is a big boy. Jamie Benn can undoubtedly chuck some massive knucks if necessary. It's been evidenced quite a few times in the past. This fight against Miles Wood was one of the best we've seen in the past few years.
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But here we are in September of the year 2020. Ryan Reaves is running around like a mad man on the ice. He's drilling dudes in the head. He's chirping coaches. He's a total menace in every sense of the word out there. And Jamie Benn's best response on how to handle a guy like that on an opposing team is to "just ignore him, I guess".
I thought that Jamie Benn was one of the last of a dying breed. One of the very few true power forwards left in the league. Guys who can fill the back of the net and will also cave in some skulls. Old time hockey. Eddie Shore. But it's over now. That right there might be the definitive nail in the coffin. Unless, of course, Jamie Benn ends up fighting Ryan Reaves at some point during this series. But I'm not very hopeful that moment will come right now. I hope all you analytic nerds out there are happy, because this is all your fault. You think Gordie Howe gave a fuck about analytics? Not a chance. But somehow the calculator dorks have destroyed his beautiful game. Sad!