Just as he got over the centre red line, heading towards the offensive blue line, he clearly identified McAmmond in the far corner, beginning to move behind the net, and Downie sprinted at top speed. It was clear from way before the moment of contact what he was doing and what was going to happen if McAmmond didn't alter his course. It was like watching a high-speed auto accident unfold right in front of you.

To Downie's credit, I suppose, he did stop churning his legs and began to glide, mitigating the issue of a charge to some degree. But there was never any doubt in my mind what was in Downie's mind, he was going avenge the hit he took and McAmmond was going to pay the price.

-- Bob McKenzie

On McAmmond

Current status: Dean has been released from the hospital with no serious injury. He is expected in Scotiabank Place today for treatment.

We should expect this to be a long-term injury. McAmmond has a colourful history of past concussions and with his age, his long-term brain health is the most important thing.

Dean is a huge loss for the Senators. He was such a reliable player, and even though this allows a rookie to make the team (Nikulin? Foligno?), they won't have his experience.

Also, we won the game 4-2.

Worst headline: McAmmond goes Downie.

On Downie

He's not a dirty player -- there is a difference between a calculated intent to injure, and an inability to calculate at all. Steve Downie isn't known for dirty hits, he's known for attacking players, beating up a rookie because the rookie refused to strip and cram into a bus bathroom and general psychotic behaviour. He's been suspended from the OHL more times than anyone cares to keep track of.

Sure, it's to his advantage to be tenacious and edgy but there's a fine line between physical and psycho. Won't someone, anyone, sit him down and tell him that he needs to stop following his emotions and use his goddamn brain?

Shouldn't it have occurred to him that this was a preseason game? Shouldn't Downie have realized that headhunting is a hyperbolic overreaction to whatever he thought wasn't being called? Shouldn't Downie have realized that he was essentially targeting whatever is left of Dean McAmmond's brain?

Shouldn't Downie have realized that he had just intentionally, violently hurt another human being and felt some sort of sympathy? Many reports are coming out that Downie was giggling as blood gurgled from Dean McAmmond's nose and mouth.

At least Colby Armstrong had the emotional intelligence to be concerned. Downie has never apologized for his actions in the OHL, even though he got his entire team's staff fired, even though he's been suspended so many times. He destroyed an entire team and never once said sorry. That's why I don't believe his "heartfelt remorse" statement after the game. He hasn't changed. He's just getting better at PR.

Downie has always been a battler on the ice, in part to answer the personal challenges he faced. His father, John Downie, was killed in an auto accident when he was driving seven-year-old Steve to an early morning practice in Everett, Ont. Ann Downie took over driving her sons, Steve and Greg, to hockey practices and maintaining the family farm in Queensville, a hamlet north of Toronto.

At age 13, Downie lost the hearing in his right ear. He wears a hearing aid off the ice. All through those life challenges, Downie displayed one stoic trait he never complained.

“After all that has happened and all he has had to overcome, you never see Steve feeling sorry for himself,” Twohey said. “He’s an upbeat kid, a positive kid who is liked by all his teammates.”

You know, Steve, saying sorry isn't the same thing as feeling sorry for yourself.

Unless someone in a mentor role takes control of Steve Downie right now, there will be bigger hits and bigger consequences to come. He has the history of violence and clearly lacks stability and emotional control. He's a psychopath!

I loathe the day I see his face on a newspaper again.

Lastly, perhaps it's beyond my concern as just a hockey fan, but I worry about Steve Downie off the ice. I don't believe that you can just "turn it off" away from the arena; that sort of rage is practiced and instilled. I wouldn't want to be around him when he gets angry.

Throughout the entire scrum that followed Downie's hit, Patrick Eaves was trying to shove bodies off McAmmond's body, get the medical staff, and push the doctor onto the ice as fast as he could. Then he made sure we won the game for Dean with 2 assists.

Dean and Patrick are close off the ice, and the last time Patrick was knocked out, Dean literally fought for him, against Maxim Talbot.

It's us against the world.

Labels: dean mcammond, preseason, steve downie