Dunlap: Maybe There Was More To Marleau's Hit On Rust
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The Fan) - Seems one of today's big topics here in Pittsburghland after the Penguins took a 1-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final with a slim win over the San Jose Sharks last night is a play that dented Bryan Rust.
In the third period, the Sharks' Patrick Marleau barreled into Rust with his chest and shoulder, making contact with his head and knocking Rust for a loop.
Rust was dazed it appeared. He didn't look all the way right, that's for sure.
He gathered his wits --- or what was left of them --- and gradually pulled himself to his feet and then the bench.
Rust returned briefly but was soon done for the remainder of the night and his status remains uncertain as the NHL's doesn't --- there will be no supplemental discipline for Marleau to go along with the two minute penalty he was made to serve as a result of the check.
So many today want to arrive at an easy debate topic: "Should Patrick Marleau have been suspended" or "Was it a dirty hit?" or some variation of the such. Especially in light of a one-game suspension handed down to Kris Letang in the Washington series, those questions are more than fair.
But here's where my mind is on all of this: Do you think that was a message-sending hit? That is to say, do you think Marleau --- and by extension the rest of the Sharks --- were already tired of (and it was already obvious) after the better part of Game 1 that Pittsburgh was the much faster team and the best way to start countering that was to maybe start picking some people off.
Especially picking off the guys who could really skate.
Especially picking off the guys they had trouble catching.
Or, more so, especially laying a shot to the guy who was probably the faster skater on the ice for either team --- Bryan Rust.
And on top of that, not just a fast skater, but a guy, in Rust, who has produced goals at a frightening rate over the last few games.
That's where I am with all of this after I think about it for a bit and watch the replay of the Marleau hit a few more times. Just my opinion --- and it's just opinion --- but I feel like he knew exactly what he was doing. It had been tough for the Sharks to catch the Penguins (and especially Rust) all night in Game 1 so instead of chasing them anymore, someone was going to take the first chance they had to knock the hell out of one of them.
Marleau got that chance and took it.
Only he can truly answer what his intentions were on that play, but in my opinion that's what went down.
In the run-up to this Stanley Cup Final, one of the biggest storylines was how were the Sharks going to counter the Penguins' speed, particular the speed the Penguins had in their top three lines.
For me at least, we saw San Jose try to match it until they came to the realization they couldn't ---- and then they turned to goonism.
It will be interesting to see where it goes from here.
Colin Dunlap is a featured columnist at CBSPittsburgh.com. He can also be heard weekdays from 5:40 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Sports Radio 93-7 "The Fan." You can e-mail him at colin.dunlap@cbsradio.com. Check out his bio here.
