After the hit on Flyers Owen Tippett by Brenden Dillon last night some hockey fans not familiar with the term are asking what exactly is a “suicide pass”. First off, it is not a technical term it’s hockey slang. Some also call it a “hospital pass”. The term describes a play where the receiver of the pass, weather knowingly or unknowingly, is going to get creamed by an opposing player as soon as he makes contact with the puck.
Flyers head coach John Tortorella blew his stack on the bench last night after there was no call against the Devils on the hit. After the game Tortorella rescinded his previous opinion on the play. “I just didn’t think the puck was there, but the puck was there. I looked at it after the game and the puck was there”.
What does that mean?
It’s not legal to check another player unless they have possession of the puck. It would be pure chaos if you could just skate around randomly flooring opposing players. The physical aspect of the game follows the puck.
Owen Tippett’s contact with the puck just before the hit is ever so slight. It just ticks off his stick at the last second before the impact. It is totally understandable that this was missed by the Flyers coach and probably at least half the people watching depending on which team you were rooting for. Tippett went straight up the tunnel and did not return to the game. We’re still awaiting and update on his injury.
Which brings us back to the original point. A suicide pass is an unfortunate timing issue where many different factors all come together at the same time. Perhaps the passer misjudged the timing or the speed of the pass. Or maybe they were not aware of the positioning of the opposing players. Sometimes you just plain misfire the puck and it does not reach your teammate as quickly as you had planned.
As far as the pass receiver is concerned they may be aware that the timing is off and they are going to get legally walloped the second they touch the puck. Out of dedication they brace themselves and do their best to accept the pass and the hit which is sure to follow. In the case of last night’s hit Tippett appears to have been looking in the direction of the puck until just before impact.
The puck seems to graze Tippett’s stick when it is approaching the area between his skates which brings me to my final point. There is only one area on the ice surface where the puck is completely invisible to a player and that is when the it is directly between their own skates. It seems totally unfair that the hockey gods added this aspect to the sport but it is a real thing. The gear and the way the jersey covers the gear creates the blind spot.
So the player who is standing directly over the puck is the only person on the ice or in the stands who can not see where it is. Teammates start yelling “skates, skates, skates” as everyone starts digging in at your feet with their sticks. Keep that in mind the next time you hear someone in the stands yelling “it’s right there you moron”.
So it was an unfortunate turn of events and hopefully Owen Tippett is not seriously injured. He is a strong dedicated team player who would most likely attempt to take that pass whether he saw the hit coming or not.
Flyers vs Islanders tonight in Philly 7:30 PM
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