Milan Lucic fires back at anyone who thinks he should be suspended for hit on Mike Smith

Calgary Flames forward Milan Lucic ignited an absolute firestorm of controversy in Game 3 of the Battle of Alberta last night when he absolutely ran over Edmonton Oilers goaltender Mike Smith behind the Oilers' net.

Here's the play in question:

Lucic was assessed a 5 minute Major and a Game Misconduct for the hit on Smith, which left Smith uninjured. Smith was forced from the game due to the NHL's concussion protocol rules, but he returned to finish the game and is expected to be 100% for Game 4. As for Lucic, he avoided supplemental discipline for the hit as NHL Player Safety deemed his in-game punishment to be sufficient. And you know what? I agree.

Lucic clearly attempts to make a play on the puck and stops up on Smith before colliding with him. If Lucic were trying to take Smith out of action he'd have buried him about four rows behind the net. And you know what? Lucic essentially said exactly that when meeting with the media today saying “If I did charge (Mike Smith) we both wouldn’t be playing tomorrow”, when asked if he deliberately charged Smith.

I mean... he's not wrong.

While Lucic isn't everyone's favourite player he can still absolutely truck people like few other players in the NHL. If he were attempting to line Smith up and take him out, Smith would be done for the season. That's not what happened in this case and I personally feel like the NHL got this ruling right.

Now, having said all that Lucic better be prepared to drop the gloves early on in Game 4 because he absolutely has to atone for his hit on Smith. I suspect that he'll have no problem obliging Zack Kassian or some other Oilers player in that regard however. This is playoff hockey in the Battle of Alberta. Drop the puck, drop the mitts and let's see where the chips fall. That's hockey, baby!