Cody Eakin's Hit on Matt Stajan 'One of the Dirtiest Hits' Bob Hartley Has Ever Seen (Video)

Cody Eakin’s Hit on Matt Stajan ‘One of the Dirtiest Hits’ Bob Hartley Has Ever Seen (Video)

by John Beattie on Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 9:33AM

A head coach will stick up for his player 999 times out of 1,000, but Flames head coach Bob Hartley might want to watch game film before making crazy accusations.

On Monday night, Cody Eakin caught Matt Stajan with his head down in the neutral zone — kind of. At first glance, the hit looked pretty dirty, but as Yahoo! Sports’ Puck Daddy points out, maybe it’s worth a second look before anyone starts tossing suspension talk around.

At least one guy — Hartley — wasn’t happy with the hit, to say the least.

“I remember when they instituted the five minute [penalty] for interference. That’s a classic case,” Hartley told the Dallas Morning News after the game. “That’s one of the dirtiest hits that I’ve seen…Those hits can end careers.”

Check out the hit below. Not only did Stajan fail miss a shift, it looks like he put a little pizzazz into the fall, no? You be the judge.