Flames GM disagrees with Kostopoulos suspension

Flames forward Tom Kostopoulos has been handed a 6 game suspension by the NHL for his vicious hit on Wings defenseman Brad Stuart the left him with a broken jaw and 6-8 week stay on the IR.
Many, including Wings fans and the Wings organization were screaming for disciplinary action to take place, especially since it caused Stuart significant injury. Not to mention that Kostopoulos is a repeat offender.
However, Flames GM Jay Feaster and Kostopoulos himself do not agree with the length of the suspension.
Here is what they had to say via the Flames official website…
“We strongly disagree, not only with the length of the suspension, but also with the fact that Tom was suspended,” said Jay Feaster, acting general manager of the Flames.
“While we are sorry the player was injured, we maintained in the hearing the hit was a legal check. The player was batting at the puck and Tom hit him in the chest and finished his check through him.
He did not target the head, and we do not believe the head was the initial point of contact. We respect the difficult job Colin Campbell has to do in these situations, and we appreciate the opportunity we were afforded to present our case; however, we simply do not agree with the decision.”
“I’m extremely disappointed in the League’s ruling as I believe I have not done anything illegal,” said Kostopoulos. “I’m sorry that Brad was hurt on the play and I hope he returns to play soon, but it was never my intention to injure him and I definitely did not target the head. I maintain that I delivered a legal check to an opponent playing the puck. While I am upset with the League’s decision, I will serve the suspension in preparation for my return to the line-up to help my team.”
Feaster and Kostopoulos aren’t alone in thinking that the punishment handed down was too harsh. Dirk Hoag who writes for the website On the Forecheck that the NHL’s ruling on this doesn’t coincide with Rule 48.1 which deals with hits on the blindside and to the head.
The bottom line in all of this though is simple. Kostopoulos has a history. Even if he was making a high hit to the chest like Feaster was claiming, he could have simply put a hip check on Stuart which still would’ve had the same outcome of taking Stuart out of the play without taking the chance of causing injury to the him (Stuart). But judging from the type of player Kostopoulos is, he was clearly trying to take Stuart out of the play and out of the game. Because of this, Kostopoulos doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt and gets slapped with the 6 game suspension. He is lucky he didn’t get worse.
Source: NBC Sports, Calgary Flames, On the Forecheck