[VICE™]

Tonight, in the game between the Quebec Remparts and Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, Patrice Cormier (you know, the guy who was Captain for Canada at the World Juniors) decided it would be a good idea to launch his elbow directly into a players face.

The victim was Mikael Tam, a 18-year-old defenseman with the Remparts. He hit the ice face first, lost a ton of blood and convulsed on the ice for around two minutes. Initially, it was feared that he suffered a traumatic brain injury, but newer reports say that it's just a severe concussion.

Absolutely ridiculous.

Here's the video if anyone's interested. But if you have doubts about seeing this, then don't watch it. There's no sound, so don't try to adjust your speakers.

 

[Hockeytown]

Wow, that is some scary stuff. I understand that emotion plays a role in making decisions in any sport, but you have to be smarter than that. Hopefully that guy will be able to return soon.

 

[VICE™]

An update on Tam.

He left the hospital today, after being treated for brain trauma and messed up teeth. There's no word on a return other than it won't be this week (duh), and the doctors aren't sure when he'll be able to return.

The league's final decision on Cormier will be delayed because the Commissioner of the league is in Windsor for the Top Prospects game. In the mean time, Cormier has been suspended indefinitely.

 

[the flying moose]

Simply amazing that someone is dumb enough to do that. That was not emotion or anything but a blatant attempt to injure or worse. Tam could have died from that. I hope the punishment fits the crime and that it is just some slap on the wrist. I wouldn't be surprised to see criminal charges out of this. If Cormier injured Tam like that on the streets he'd be in jail right now.

 

[LivHockey84]

thats terrible...

 

[No Clue]

The dumbass was on the ice for just 5 seconds when he decided cheap shot someone! What a jackass.

 

[VICE™]

Another update on this whole mess, Quebec provincial police have confirmed that they are investigating the situation.

 

[VICE™]

TSN's story on Tam's press conference:

 

[VICE™]

http://www.nationalpost.com/sports/story.html?id=2467561

Patrice Cormier will learn Monday what the future holds for his hockey career.

That is when the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League will announce what punishment Cormier will face for elbowing an opposing player in the head in a game on Sunday.

Cormier, a forward with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, was suspended indefinitely by the QMJHL earlier this week for elbowing defenceman Mikael Tam of the Quebec Remparts.

Tam, who was seen convulsing on the ice following the hit, suffered brain trauma and broken teeth. He left the ice on a stretcher and spent the night in hospital before being released on Monday night.

Raymond Bolduc, the league's chief disciplinarian, has been collecting testimony from on-ice officials and members of the Huskies and Remparts organizations. He will consult with the QMJHL's disciplinary sanctions committee over the weekend before announcing a decision.

Cormier, 19, of Cap-Pele, N.B., captained Canada's team at the recent world junior hockey championship in Saskatchewan. He was selected by the New Jersey Devils in the 2008 NHL entry draft.

For whatever it's worth, Zach Kassian was suspended 20 games for his hit. However, that occurred in the OHL, whose commissioner, David Branch, has always made policy and decisions to protect his players well-being.

We'll see if Gilles Courteau follows Branch's example, or will he just continue along with his history of less severe punishments when compared to the other CHL leagues?

 

[Where's Bure?]

I finally watched the video after deciding not to. That's effin disgusting...hope he's gone a long time from the game.

 

[apclr]

personally i think there is far too much talk on this topic and those that are similar. it paints a terrible cloud on the game and sure it was an awful accident, but why don't people focus on how amazing the game is? this is one incident and i am glad he got the book thrown at him, but there's just too much attention for my liking.

 

[Where's Bure?]

personally i think there is far too much talk on this topic and those that are similar. it paints a terrible cloud on the game and sure it was an awful accident, but why don't people focus on how amazing the game is? this is one incident and i am glad he got the book thrown at him, but there's just too much attention for my liking.

Kinda hard to ignore an innocent guy convulsing on the ice, bleeding, with trauma to the brain at the hands of one of the game's brightest prospects...

 

[VICE™]

personally i think there is far too much talk on this topic and those that are similar. it paints a terrible cloud on the game and sure it was an awful accident, but why don't people focus on how amazing the game is? this is one incident and i am glad he got the book thrown at him, but there's just too much attention for my liking.

If you look around these forums, you would see there's tons of talk about how amazing the game is and expression of how passionate people are about hockey and their teams.

The difference is that this incident, and incidents similar have nothing to do with hockey. It's not a hockey play to launch your elbow into the face of a player, it should never be accepted, and the talk about it is very deserved. This is an attack that took place on ice. Not hockey. Cormier also has a history of elbows, throwing them during the World Junior pre-tournament games against Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic - just because the elbows don't result in the same injury that Tam suffered doesn't mean that this is an isolated incident.

If this were a shoulder check to Tam's chest and Tam happened to hit his head on the ice and have the same result, then the conversation would take an entirely different path.

 

[sean_avery0140]

just to let you know i live like a 50 house from where patrice live and i hope he goes in the NHL and runs into Sean Avery and then Avery Beats him up

and he got the rest of the season

 

[LanellePalmer]

personally i think there is far too much talk on this topic and those that are similar.