Anyone that's played serious, competitive hockey can probably recall a moment where a game was on the line and an opposing player was winding up for big slapper that could potentially tie the score when a guy selflessly threw himself in front of the blast to negate the scoring chance. The best analogy would be to picture a war, where a guy jumps on a live grenade to save the rest of his comrades. Obviously, the mortality rate is slightly less while performing a shot-block than grenade-smothering, but the effect on the people around that person is quite similar. The respect that a player gets for such a feat is increased and the momentum swings in that team's favor. It doesn't seem right to penalize a player for risking some serious bruising for the good of the team. Take that away, and you get a bunch of guys standing around like pylons as they try to close the wickets before the shot comes through. How many more players will go on the IR with broken ankles/feet using this technique?
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