Canadian forward Zack Kassian's hit to Czech Republic defenceman Petr Senkerik was not a classic headshot where Kassian was preying on somebody and then delivered a shoulder-to-head hit with no other body contact along the way. I think he was looking to stand him up with a hit.
But was there contact to the head? The more I watched it I thought, absolutely yes; there was contact in the chin area.
Keep in mind that the IIHF's standard on hits to the head is much tougher than it is in the National Hockey League. In fact it's not just hits to the head, its hits to the head and neck area, so I don't think you could dispute that Kassian's shoulder did come up around Senkerik's neck and head area. There obviously was injury on the play, so it was a pretty obvious call.
Schenn Looking Focused
Brayden Schenn played very well against Russia on Sunday and played even better against the Czech Republic on Tuesday, and I wondered a little bit about the attitude and focus of a player like himself coming into this tournament.
Not because Schenn isn't a great player, the Los Angeles Kings took him 5th overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft because of that, but here's a 19-year-old kid who's playing in the NHL and not getting a lot of minutes and not playing in a lot of games.
Sent to the American Hockey League for a conditioning stint, Schenn got himself back into the Los Angeles lineup before getting shipped off to the Brandon Wheat Kings ever so briefly, and now he's pinballed back to Team Canada.
A lot of times, young players that are playing professional hockey and don't get a lot of minutes or don't get into the rhythm of a real season come play in the world juniors and never really find their groove. But right from the get-go, Schenn's had the focus and he looks like he's ready to play.