The Columbus Blue Jackets are a really physical hockey team -- perhaps one of the most physical teams in the league -- a style of play that can sometimes get them in trouble. It happened Tuesday night when forward Jared Boll was ejected early in the second period for interference on Philadelphia Flyers forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare.
Here is a look at the play, which is clearly well after Bellemare passed the puck to a teammate.
Boll was immediately sent to the dressing room but was told to wait by the bench by John Tortorella as the Columbus coach angrily yelled about why his player was getting ejected (you get a brief look at it toward the end of this clip).
After a brief discussion, the officials eventually ejected Boll and gave him a five-minute major for interference.
Philadelphia's Ryan White also picked up a two-minute for roughing on the play for going after Boll in the aftermath of the hit.
It's not often you see a major penalty for interference, but according to rule 56.4 the officials are allowed assess a major based on "the degree of violence." The game misconduct becomes automatic when a player is injured as a result of the interference.
Bellemare initially left the game after the hit but returned 10 minutes later.
Boll's skates didn't seem to come off the ice until after he made contact with Bellemare, and it didn't seem to be a direct hit to the head, but the lateness of the hit is a real problem. The puck seems to be long gone and this isn't an example of a player "finishing his check." He went out of his way to hit a guy that clearly did not have the puck.
The league typically gives players around 0.6 seconds after the puck is moved before it is considered late. It will be interesting to see how the league times this one and whether Boll is facing any supplemental discipline.
