Islanders Drop Ruthless Comments After ‘Vicious’ Hits on Rangers

Getty Noah Dobson #8 of the New York Islanders checks Vincent Trocheck #16 of the New York Rangers

Finally, after two days without hearing from them, the perpetrators of the “intentional” and “vicious” hits and those receiving them spoke to the media covering their respective franchises, the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers, on Thursday, April 11.

In a rather surprising outcome, the Islanders hosted and beat the league-leading Rangers 4-2 on April 9 to solidify their position in the race for a postseason berth while delaying the Rangers hopes for adding another Presidents’ Trophy to the franchise lore.

The result of the game, however, wasn’t the thing making most of the headlines. As documented by Heavy, the main storyline around the game was the two hits committed by Islanders players and labeled as “intentional” and “vicious” by Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette after the game.

On Thursday, Rangers forward Mika Zibanejad, as well as Islanders offenders Adam Pelech and Noah Dobson (who sent Rangers center Vincent Trocheck face-first to the boards at the tail end of Tuesday’s game), addressed the media ahead of their respective games to be played later on the day.

“I’ll just say it was completely unintentional,” Pelech told reporters on April 11 when asked about his hit on Mika Zibanejad, via Kevin Maher of News12. “I hope Mika’s okay.”

Pelech tried to explain that while the game’s broadcast showed him hitting Zibanejad, the cameras didn’t show his reaction to the hit properly. He believes if that moment had been shown, the narrative would have been different.

“I think if the camera showed me at all after the collision, you could tell that I felt sick about it,” Pelech said. “[Zibanejad] didn’t look good going down and getting up off the ice.

“Like I said, it was completely unintentional and I hope he was okay.”

Noah Dobson Thinks His Violent Hit Was “Just a Hockey Play”

Dobson, who hit Rangers forward Trocheck from behind with less than 20 seconds left to play in an action that resulted in a non-call and a subsequent empty-net goal by the Islanders, doesn’t think he did anything wrong on the ice.

“In his mind,” Dobson was just battling for the puck and trying to win a game.

“It was just a hockey play,” Dobson told reporters on April 11, via Stefen Roster of The Hockey News. “In my mind, we were trying to battle, trying to win a game, trying to get a playoff spot.

“The intensity’s high. Trying to go for the puck and obviously, he falls. I’m not trying to hurt anyone on the play. Glad he was able to get up.”

Dobson also said that he “doesn’t care” about what Laviolette said after the game in reference to the “vicious” label he attached to his and Pelech’s hits.

“I don’t care too much what other team’s coaches are saying. We got enough to focus on,” Dobson said. “Obviously, their coaches are gonna protect their players, our coaches are gonna protect our players.

“I haven’t given any thought to it.”

Trocheck gets crushed from behind with no call. Trocheck is pissed!! and has ever right to be. #NYR

Mika Zibanejad “Hopes” There Was Nothing Intentional About the Hit

In an indirect response to Pelech’s comments, and from the Rangers’ side of the story, Zibanejad was also asked by reporters about the hit that forced him out of Tuesday’s game with the forward never making it back to the ice.

Zibanejad runs into Pelech’s elbow, ouch.

“I didn’t see him,” Zibanejad told reporters on April 11. “It was more shock than anything, maybe, that all of a sudden he was there.

“It’s a bizarre situation. I look (and) I don’t see him. I don’t know if he’s stopping or whatever he’s doing, but I don’t see that. I kind of take a look left and right before, and then the play is in the other end and I’m in the neutral zone.

“I’m just looking at the play, and all of a sudden, he’s there. It’s a situation you don’t want to happen. I really hope it wasn’t intentional.”

Contrary to what Laviolette did following the game on Tuesday, labeling the hits as “vicious, intentional,” and coming “from behind,” Zibanejad wasn’t into blaming anybody for things that he doesn’t want to believe were done on purpose.

“I’m not going to sit here and make accusations or whatever,” Zibanejad told reporters. “I’m trying to focus on how I’m doing, how I’m feeling, and that’s the only important thing right now.”

The Rangers haven’t ruled out Zibanejad for Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers. New York will also host the Islanders for a final game between both franchises on Saturday with puck drop scheduled for 12:30 at Madison Square Garden.