If you're Canadian, you've probably already seen video of junior hockey play Patrice Cormier's cheap hit on an opponent. If not, here it is. (I warn you that it is not for the faint-hearted.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aplfhPu4iiU

Cormier is a rising star and will almost certainly enter the NHL as a New Jersey Devil.

So many of things about this hit sicken me. Firstly, he rushed off the bench with no other intention but to hit this player with his elbow up. That one player would have so little respect for another is disgusting. What's worse is that Cormier is very talented. There was a time when behavior like this was limited to "goons" incapable of much else.

Of course, it's Cormiers star power that lets him get away with this. He has been suspended for the remainder of the season and the playoffs. Big deal. It's not going to hurt his career. The General Manager of the Devils called Cormier and told him that he didn't have any trouble with the hit. Some hockey commentators went so far as to blame the other player for "not having his head up."

Cormier issued statements saying he never intended to injure Tab. Really? You rush at another player at speed and hit him in the head with an elbow, but you didn't mean to hurt him. Clearly, these players need a lot more education on the mechanism and consequence of brain injuries - and so does everybody else.

When I first heard about this incident on the news, the sports guy was so on and on about how this could end Cormier's career that, until I saw the video, I thought Cormier was the one who'd been hit. Since he's not a star, nobody gave a rat's butt about the other kid.

Am I alone in thinking that this little thug should be charged with assault? Instead, what he's hearing is his current coach complain that the suspension is too harsh and his future boss saying the hit was okay.

The only person facing any consequences here is the victim. His life has been changed forever.

As the NHL turns itself into some cross between roller derby and WWE to expand into markets without a hockey tradition, this sort of nonsense will only get worse -and young kids will copy what they see. While this rant made me feel better, I know I can't change this tragic dynamic. I have, however, decided that my child will not be playing organized hockey when she gets old enough. As a former player and coach that breaks my heart - but this is no longer the game I loved for so many years.

Cheers