Downie suspended again - 20 games

I remember a lot of people being very upset when Downie left. I think it's obvious now that the kid is never going to learn. As Mirtle puts it, "Downie strikes me as a very troubled human being."

almost 3 years ago Travis Hughes 4 comments 0 recs |

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Have you seen a video of the ref-slash yet? Cause I haven’t. And I’m going to reserve judgment until I do, because I’ve read two sides of the story already, and I’m not sure which one I believe. Naturally, I’m leaning towards “Downie flew off the handle cause he was pissed he didn’t get the penalty call” given his history of sucker punching practically helpless people (see: Jason Blake), but I’m not going to say it was an intentional ref-slash or an over-the-top reaction to what was going on until I know more.

That said, it does seem as if Downie is slowly but surely going the Jesse Boulerice route: unbalanced and just can’t control himself.

by eeeeee on Mar 5, 2009 3:17 PM EST reply actions

I don’t think there is video of the incident. Public video, at least.

I wanted to like Downie so badly when he was here, and the kid definitely has some talent, but it seems impossible to reel him in. He’s been involved in trouble in literally every league he’s ever played in, so whether this incident was a little overblown or not, it’s not like there’s no track record or anything.

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by Travis Hughes on Mar 5, 2009 3:31 PM EST up reply actions

I’m the same way in that I’ve wanted to like Downie so much since day 1, and I’ve been forced to defend him a LOT to nearly every friend of mine who is a hockey fan. I’m still of the mind that most of his “incidents” are just blown way out of proportion due to the perception that goes along with wearing a flying P on your shirt, and having a history. I mean, in the beginning of this season, it was clear that he was getting called for all sorts of non-penalties just because of who he is- his reputation precedes him. And that’s why it seems so hard to keep defending him, because I’ve had to do it in the past. But the only incident that I really hold against him is the Blake sucker punch, pretty much everything else I’ve seen since he became a Flyer/Bolt I’m ok with.

by eeeeee on Mar 5, 2009 4:55 PM EST up reply actions

I don’t know about this one actually. I saw something where Mike Butters (a guy I used to play hockey with, so I know him personally) who is the GM of Downie’s team now, was quoted by a Tampa Bay reporter:

“Downie was written up for abuse of an official after a determination Downie slashed linesman Mike Hamilton with 14 seconds left in the third period. But Norfolk GM Mike Butters said Downie was trying to swipe at the stick of Hershey player Andrew Joudrey on a faceoff. He added that even if Downie’s stick hit Hamilton’s skate (and Butters said that after watching the video "70 times in slow motion, stop fame” he still is not sure that happened), it was unintentional.

“I am absolutely sure,” Butters said Sunday, “there was no intent whatsoever for any aggressive actions toward the official.”

Butters said the official did not fall on the play and there was no interaction between player and official after the faceoff. Butters said he was shocked Downie was written up.

The other thing about Downie people need to remember is that the guy is half deaf. He can’t hear what’s going on around him and at times he gets fixated on his perception of what’s happening, and misses what seems obvious to everyone else who can hear what people are saying when he can’t.

With that said, Downie was never going to be a good player for the Flyers and if anything they gave him more chances then he earned. It was a bad draft pick in the first place.

by Gizmoitus on Mar 5, 2009 3:29 PM EST reply actions