The old axiom-turned-cliche reads thus: Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. It would be nice if someone would send a memo to NHL Director of Hockey Operations and Overlord of All Discipline Colin Campbell reminding him of such. Or put those words on a poster and hang it up in his office. Or hold him down and tattoo it on his forehead, backwards, so every time he looks in the mirror he could be reminded of it.

I say this because Campbell does not seem to turn to history to dole out his rulings on league discipline. In fact, he does not seem to turn anywhere. He does or does not suspend players based on a system that only he is privy to. That is to say, he makes it up as he goes along. This is nothing new, of course. Hockey fans have long known that not all players are created equal in terms of the severity of discipline they receive from the league.

In the past few months, there have been several incidents that landed squarely in domain of Campbell’s authority. An examination of the handling of these episodes shows a clear disregard of any logical thinking and supports accusations that league discipline is largely regulated by Campbell’s whims.

The first of these incidents happened this October when Philadelphia Flyer Mike Richards put his shoulder into the head of a defenseless and unaware David Booth of the Florida Panthers, knocking him unconscious. Booth sustained a concussion and sat out the next three months. During the game, Richards was given a 5-minute major and a game misconduct for the hit.

Any misconduct ruling automatically triggers review from the top NHL brass to see if additional punishment is warranted. Upon review, Overlord Campbell decided that no additional punishment would be given to Richards for the hit. Devastating hit, but clean according to Campbell. And Richards wasn’t on his List of Evil Repeat Offenders. The end result was that nothing happened to Richards, but the fans and media focused increased attention to hits to the head.

Four months later came the Matt Cooke fiasco. Near the end of a Penguins/Bruins game with both teams battling for playoff position, Boston forward Marc Savard was trying to get his team back in the game when he took a shot on goal, and subsequently a shot to the face. In a prone position immediately after releasing a shot on net, he was destroyed by Pittsburgh winger Matt Cooke’s shoulder. Savard went down in a heap, unconscious, and left the ice on a stretcher. No penalty was called on the ice.

The play was reviewed by the league office and The Overlord decided that the hit was too similar to the one Richards made on Booth. Since there was no suspension in that case, there would be no suspension here. Which would be fine, except that the two cases are similar only in the location of the hit in question. Cooke is a known dirty player that has to be near the top of Campbell’s List of Evil Repeat Offenders. And I don’t know anyone who’s seen the hit in question who didn’t think it was a dirty play. Was Cooke’s intent to injure? Maybe. Maybe not. I can’t say for sure. But he sure didn’t let up when he could have. Instead he put his shoulder square into Savard’s cranium and scrambled his eggs, basically finishing his season for him. He should have been suspended. But he wasn’t, because of a precedent set earlier that may have also been the wrong call.

We’ll take a quick history time out to explain that the name Campbell comes from the Gaelic “Cam Beul”, meaning “Crooked Mouth”, referring to someone who is dishonest. An interesting tidbit, that’s all.

Taking a quick tally, the NHL league offices realized they have two players with head trauma, no suspensions, and no leg to stand on if players decide that its open season on opposing players’ melons. So the league quickly and embarrassingly passed a measure that makes hits to the head illegal. But it doesn’t go into effect this season. It goes into effect NEXT YEAR. The NHL drops the ball again.

Maybe a week after the Matt Cooke craziness died down, borderline dirty player and League Superstar Alexander Ovechkin pushed Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell into the boards from behind, breaking his collarbone. Ovechkin was given a major penalty for boarding, received a game misconduct and was ejected. The punishment was swift for Ovechkin, who got a 2-game suspension.

Fast forward to the NHL playoffs. Chicago Blackhawk forward Marion Hossa commits an almost identical hit from behind to Nashville’s Dan Damhuis. He does not get a game misconduct. He is not ejected. He gets a 5-minute major which his team fights off, and then skates in to help win the game-winning goal. When the matter is sent to the league offices for review, Hossa receives absolutely no punishment. Why the difference in punishments? Was it because Ovechkin is on the List of Evil Repeat Offenders and Hossa isn’t? Because Brian Campbell was badly hurt and Damhuis seemed relatively all right?

Or is it because the NHL frowns upon doling out any suspensions during the playoffs?

Its a possibility.  Just a few days before the Hossa hit, Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara received a fighting major and game misconduct for his role in a brawl near the end of a playoff game. He also received the dreaded instigator penalty, which in the last five minutes of a game carries an automatic one-game suspension. After review, Overlord Campbell overruled the automatic suspension specifically spelled out in the rulebook, letting Chara play the next game in the hotly-contested playoff series. He watched a video of the incident and judged the officials who were on the ice right next to the players in the incident were wrong in their assessment. I wonder if this will set a precedent for the next player who receives the instigator penalty.

The history of objectionable officiating in the NHL is a long one, but recently it seems that the NHL front office is writing its own questionable history. There is no rhyme or reason to who is suspended, for what duration, for what offense. Each individual seems to be judged separately based on the Overlord’s individual perception. And while each case may be slightly different, having the NHL’s rule of law based on a single man’s opinions that seemingly change with each setting sun is no way to govern.

Did the NHL learn nothing from America’s past and the formation of the democratic system? Giving all the disciplinary power to an individual is dangerous. And if that individual’s thinking is flawed, unstable, ludicrous? Not to go all biblical, but you reap what you sow.

Perhaps Campbell should do some research on his genealogy. He would find that he, like all Campbells, is descended from the Clan Campbell, a warrior-tribe from the Scottish Highlands. The Campbell clan motto is Ne Obliviscaris. It translates from Latin to “Forget Not”. It would be nice if Campbell took his ancestors’ motto to heart.

If not, its time to make Colin Campbell history.