Canadiens head coach Marty St. Louis goes off on Jacob Trouba for hit on Justin Barron

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Joshua Deeds
October 23, 2024 (7:09 PM)

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The New York Rangers' 7-2 defeat saw the team handily defeat the Canadiens, but not without some controversy.

Thanks to Captain Jacob Trouba, the NHL media, and fans are up in arms about the hit last night that leveled the Canadiens Justin Barron.

Trouba demolished Barron in the third period, which saw him hit the ice in pain:

Barron would leave the game, and Trouba would engage in fisticuffs but ultimately would receive no discipline for the hit.

Canadiens Coach Martin St. Louis stated that the play was dirty and that the head was the point of contact:

«When I saw the replay I found the principal point of contact was the head,» St. Louis said after the game.

St. Louis undoubtedly shares an opinion that differs from others who still believe the play was clean.

«It was a devastating hit devastating but clean,» TSN's Darren Dreger said. «That is how you can break down a lot of Jacob Trouba hits. You don't like them because they're explosive and can be damaging, and you never like to see a player like Justin Barron - any player for that matter - down and dazed on the play

«He did not target the head. You have to look at it and put both players in the sequence. It's not just about how Jacob Trouba went through Justin Barron. Was Justin Barron responsible for a position of vulnerability? And that matters.»

Trouba's intentions may be clear as you can see he leans into the hit with his shoulder.

While you can say it does look clean, the intent and the result are obvious, as Barron wouldn't be able to play later that night.

Everyone loves a nice, clean, and highlight-reel hit, but potentially putting someone's career in danger, because "it looked clean" is two different things entirely.

"They had a clean hit on the ice, we have a hit to the head from a player that's had multiple, multiple warnings," Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher said, according to The Athletic. "So, whether the league decides to do the right thing, whether he gets another pass, that's up to them."

All in all, Trouba gets the kid gloves by the NHL, and for what? This kind of play seems contrary to contributing to the teams success, but more or less goon behavior.