Tom Wilson could be in some hot water with the Department of Player Safety after a high hit that he delivered during Friday’s Capitals-Bruins game. Wilson’s bodycheck sent 6-5 defenseman Brandon Carlo woozily to the locker room and out of the game.
Coming into tonight’s showdown, in an article we entitled Tom Wilson’s totally going to fight tonight isn’t he?, the Capitals’ first-line forward addressed Trent Frederic targeting Alex Ovechkin last game, calling it “weird” and predicting another physical affair Friday.
He wasn’t wrong. During a particularly nasty first-period shift, Wilson hit Frederic twice — once in the neutral zone and once in the defensive zone — and then appeared to challenge the forward to a fight. When Frederic passed on the offer, Wilson skated down to the other zone and finished Brandon Carlo into the glass.
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Wilson’s hit, which went unpenalized, was controversial and interpreted differently by both fanbases. Bruins announcer Jack Edwards called it a “head hit” and “intentional.” From this reporter’s point of view, the principal point of contact was Carlo’s chest and shoulder. As Wilson followed through into the hit, he then crunched Carlo’s head into the boards.
Tom Wilson with a dangerous hit on Carlo. pic.twitter.com/Pb0SWE8OHN
— Brodie 4 Norris (@LeafsAllDayy) March 6, 2021
TSN’s Frank Seravalli shared his opinion of the hit on Twitter, saying that the hit was not illegal.
This will be an unpopular tweet, and that’s fine, because I don’t conclude based on reputation or narrative.
My opinion: Tom Wilson’s hit on Carlo is not illegal.
Carlo’s head is not the main point of contact. Break it down, sure looks like he gets chest/torso first. [Thread] pic.twitter.com/10fhMN1CAt
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 6, 2021
So if you don’t like the hit, and think it’s dangerous and should be out of the game – well then that’s a different conversation.
That’s a conversation about changing the rule book, which to this point, GMs haven’t had appetite for further change.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 6, 2021
It took several minutes for Carlo to get up. Once he did, he immediately went down to the locker room and would not return. The Bruins later announced that he was out for the game.
UPDATE: Brandon Carlo (upper body) will not return to tonight's game. #NHLBruins
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 6, 2021
Before the drop of the puck in the second period, both teams screamed at each other about the play. Wilson would later answer the bell for the hit, fighting both Jarred Tinordi and Trent Frederic.
