Daniel "Twinkle Toes" Carcillo a Little Light on His Feet as He Levels Ruslan Fedotenko with a "Good Hit"

Some clips give more obvious hints than others, but you can always tell which team the television commentators are rooting for or cover on a regular basis based on how they react to an arguable cheap shot in a game. I do believe that's former Philadelphia Flyer Keith Jones doing colour, so that should tell you all you need to know before watching this hit. If the team had been working the game from a New York Rangers-angle you can bet beyond a shadow of a doubt that they would have been calling for Dan Carcillo's head on a plate to feed to the Bogeyman, Derek Boogaard, immediately after the hit. Yes, apparently Boogaard's diet is made up of the heads of opponents and the fear they carry around with them just prior to playing him.

Really, the only matter up for debate in regard to this hit is whether or not Carcillo left his feet before making contact with New York Ranger Ruslan Fedotenko or upon it. Because he did leave his feet. That much is clear. Obviously Fedotenko had his head down and should have been more aware of his surroundings, most notably that there was a dirty player lurking around by the name of Carcillo, who's notorious for his head-hunting AND pantomiming-getting-high-sticked abilities like it's no one's business. I mean, if you were downtown and penniless and you needed $10 quick, there's no street performer  whose help I would recommend enlisting more than Carcillo's. He's just that convincing... unless you have the benefit of instant replay.

Still, the hit goes back to a lack of respect in the NHL between players, and with players like Carcillo running around, it's easy to understand why. The hit was borderline and likely won't result in any additional discipline from the NHL, meaning Carcillo will likely do the same thing again under the same set of circumstances. Makes you kind of long for the instigator rule being repealed, doesn't it? Who says the league can't clean up the game without cracking down on shots to the head? For the record, Carcillo did end up fighting Brandon Prust, but that wasn't the main event we were looking for.