While Savard sat in front of the cameras, somewhere Matt Cooke was cherishing his remaining six teeth.
After his likely season-ending concussion, Savard spoke to the cameras about the hit, about Cooke, and about the continual effects of the play which created quite a stir around the league. The hit ended up setting a precedent throughout the league until the GM's decided to push forward the "No Head Shots" rule that was going to be initiated at the beginning of the '10/'11 campaign.
The Bruins came under fire after their lack of response after Savard went down, and it wasn't until Scott Thornton stepped up at their next meeting where they showed any backbone. Cooke, known for being a pest, refused to take off his visor, losing whatever respect he could have gained by dropping the mitts with a visor-less Thornton.
While I applaud Thornton for sticking up for his teammates, and Savard was happy about Thornton's response, I was disappointed in the rest of the Boston squad that seemed to gain no energy from the fight, and ended up losing a disappointing 3-0 game to the Penguins.
Savard's press conference told us a couple of things: the lasting damage an unnecessary hit can cause, that Savard kind of looks like a skinhead from American History X, and that he does not accept Cooke's apology. Cooke has attempted to contact Savard, but it appears that Savard is still a bit pissed: "Yeah, he has tried and he has tried to get my phone number and stuff like that," said Savard. "But from what happened I really don't, right at the moment, have any interest in talking to him and that's just how I feel. Maybe down the road, but right now, I am not feeling any better so I would rather just not talk to him."
Matt Cooke has stated he didn't attempt to injure Savard, but as a man with a history of questionable hits and even more questionable dental work, he doesn't create an image of trust (much like the man who hangs out by the Greyhound Bus station in a public masturbator trench-coat). Cooke stated Saturday, "I have to thank my wife, my kids and the Penguins for sticking by me through this. It's hard on them because they know those comments aren't true."
One thing is for certain. Whether the hit was clean or dirty, the Boston Bruins are sorely missing one of the cornerstones of their offense while they try to stay in the fight for the playoffs. If they do manage to hold on to that 8th place spot, hopefully Savard will make it back in time for their playoff run and if not, Boston will have to find answers in an offensive core that has been questionable all year.
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