The Canadian Press reports that the issue of head shots will be a major discussion point from Monday to Wednesday and is the one that will most likely result in a rule change. The issue has been discussed at length before, and Mike Richards' hit on David Booth in October seemed to build some momentum toward a rule change. Booth missed three months after the hit, while Richards was not suspended.
Cooke's hit to Savard was eerily similar, with the difference being that the puck had left Savard's stick much earlier than the puck left the stick of Booth. Add in the fact that Cooke has been disciplined multiple times in the past for similar hits (a shot to the head of Scott Walker, a high, blindside hit on Artem Anisimov and a knee-to-knee hit on Erik Cole), and it's clearly something the league will take a long look at this week.
Eight GMs will form a committee to discuss head shots, according to the report. That committee will then make a presentation to the larger group, which will decide whether or not to make a push for a rule change. If a change is decided upon, it would need to be approved by the competition committee and the NHL's board of governors.
"Everybody in the room knows that this is an important subject," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was quoted as saying after meetings in November. "It's going to require further discussion because it's not a simple subject. … I do think there's a sense when there's a shot to the head for a player who is in a vulnerable position or is unsuspecting, that's something that can and should be addressed."
Back in November, The Instigators tackled the issue.
"It's intent to injure. If there's an intent to injure, the referee has to make that decision, and he has to penalize the player for what's on the books," NESN's Bruins play-by-play man Jack Edwards said. "You have a situation here where you force the referees to read the players' minds. It's a very difficult thing."
