The IIHF World Junior Championship continues for Team Canada on Thursday as they take on the Slovakians, but the game has not started on a good note for the Canadians, more specifically, forward Nolan Foote.
Foote was assessed a 5-minute major and a game misconduct for a hit to the head on Slovakia's Kristian Kovacik, just 53 seconds into the first frame.
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The hit could have been much worse, as Foote appears to have also gotten a piece of Kovacik's shoulder prior to the head contact, however, you have to imagine that IIHF will take a long look at this to determine if supplementary discipline is warranted.
If a suspension is issued by IIHF, that would be a tough blow for Canada, as Foote is playing on the top line with captain Barrett Hayton and Alexis Lafreniere.
This is a lesson that Foote may have to learn the hard way. You have a responsibility as a player to be aware of your surroundings, and although plays happen at a very high speed, you have to be able to judge whether or not your opponent is in a vulnerable position and react accordingly to avoid injuring that player.
Conversely, you could argue that players also have a responsibility to make sure they're not putting themselves in a vulnerable position.. but I digress.
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