The Daily Faceoff Show: Was Hynes’ fine too much?

Scott Maxwell
Scott Maxwell
The Daily Faceoff Show: Was Hynes’ fine too much?
Credit: Danny Wild

Earlier today, the NHL announced that Nashville Predators coach John Hynes would be fined $25,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct towards an official.

Now, it’s not the first time a coach has received a big fine like that for speaking their minds to officials, and it certainly won’t be the last, but are these fines a little bit too extreme for what the actual crime is? Frank Seravalli and Mike McKenna answered that question on today’s Daily Faceoff Show.

Frank Seravalli: “With John Hynes fined $25,000 today by the NHL for his unsportsmanlike conduct, I guess you could call it, or inappropriate conduct. We believe this is the video that we saw on social media that earned him this fine. Rod Brind’Amour and Rick Bowness have also been fined $25,000 this season for a grand total of $75,000 between these three coaches. These coaches all received a warning first before reaching the fine point.

My question to you is, why is the NHL doing this? Is it necessary?”

Mike McKenna: “I don’t think it is. And I think at that dollar figure, it’s a lot! I mean, 25 Gs, that’s a pretty big chunk of change, it’s a lot different than the players, who’s maximum fine is just over $5,000. You can go spear a guy and get five grand, if you’re coach and you say some bad words to an official, that’s 25?

The officials are all strong enough to take this, and I think that there’s obviously a line. You don’t want to cross a line, but I’m not sure it’s a great look that coaches are getting fined 25 grand for being passionate. And when I watch Brind’Amour, when I watch Bowness especially, those were passionate moments. And I just have a hard time with that when they’re doing the best that they can to stand up for their team.”

Frank Seravalli: “You look at the Brind’Amour fine here, like I tweeted this video back in November when it happened. I understand the need for the NHL to a) want to protect it’s officials; and b) want to set a good example for young players or fans that might be watching.

But this ain’t squirt hockey, this is the NHL, and this is the big boys. First off, the refs can take it; second, if you want the coaches to not act that way, the refs should be better; and third, there’s nothing that they’re crossing the line for, as you said, they’re just passionate. Are there some expletives potentially put into those comments, I’m sure there are, but it’s nothing that you wouldn’t see abnormally in a professional sporting venue in conversation between head coach and officials. It happens all the time, and expletives go the other way, as you know from conversations on the ice, from officials to players and their coaches.

To me, I think the NHL is way overboard on these fines. Obviously the coaches would agree, but I just don’t see a need to step in and feel like you need to hammer your coaches who are just trying to make a point, and also, they want to win. They’re not caught up in the moment, they want to win, and the passion is there, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it.”

Mike McKenna: “I agree, embrace it. As long as it doesn’t cross a personal boundary, as long is it doesn’t cross anything that we’ve deemed are completely unacceptable in society. If somebody’s passionate, if Rick Bowness bands a stick on the glass, that’s not hurting anything other than that piece of carbon fiber.”

You can watch the full episode here…

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