Dear NHL, Chara deserves to be punished, no matter how much of a swell guy you think he is.

[sigh] Here's another open letter to the NHL.  I'd rather not make a habit of this, but they keep screwing up with such regularity, and on such an egregious scale, that I am compelled to howl at the moon.

Dear NHL,

I'm writing to log my complaint about YET ANOTHER wrong-headed, inconsistent, capricious ruling by the league's disciplinary board.

I am disgusted and disappointed that Zdeno Chara received no fine, no penalty, and no further disciplinary action for his hit on Max Pacioretty on March 8, 2011.

The hit was intentional, period.  It was not an 'accidental injury'.  Chara knew precisely what he was doing, and chose to do it when he did, where he did, and in the manner he did, resulting in an extremely dangerous act that produced a life-threatening injury.

This is just another example of the league giving players a free pass to disavow themselves of the consequences of the conscious choices they make on the ice.

Chara doesn't have to be a 'dirty' player for this incident to merit a lengthy suspension.  Chara made an extraordinarily poor decision during the course of play, and he absolutely must be held accountable for it.  It doesn't matter whether or not he intended to severely injure the other player.  He's still responsible.  In society, if we convict someone of manslaughter, we don't just let them go free - they're still held responsible for the consequences of their choices and actions.  And we punish them for those actions as a way of compelling that person (and everyone else) to be more attentive to similar circumstances in the future.

The league continues to embarrass itself and to erode the value of its product, and in so doing to alienate fans such as myself who love the sport but find themselves increasingly at odds with a league that continues to not only condone but encourage (through the absence of discipline) bad (if not borderline criminal) behavior, unprofessionalism and poor sportsmanship.

(Note: I selected 'NHL Consumer Product Marketing' in the feedback form because you don't offer anything that looks more appropriate for feedback regarding overall league stewardship, and I figure if any one cares that decisions are being made that tangibly undermine the commercial value of the league, it'll be the marketing department.)

(Note also: I am neither a Bruins fan nor a Canadiens fan.  I'm a hockey fan, at least for now.)