BOSTON — So who was it? All the usual suspects are long gone. Adam Burish, Ben Eager, Dustin Byfuglien, Colin Fraser and Kris Versteeg are all chirping for other teams now.
But someone said something from the Blackhawks bench that clearly upset Boston Bruins tough guy Shawn Thornton when he was leaving the ice Tuesday after cutting his face open on Fernando Pisani’s skate early in the second period.
And Thornton — who needed around 40 stitches to repair the gash on his forehead — definitely wants to know who it was.
“Yeah, something was said,” Thornton said. “Obviously, I can’t swear when I talk to you guys [in the media]. There was some stuff said that I am not happy about. I am going to find out who it was and I will deal with it in my own way.”
Moments after Thornton left, giant-sized Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara had a few words with winger Patrick Kane on the ice.
But the source of the words directed at Thornton are still a mystery.
“[Referee Don Van Massenhoven] heard it and he was pissed,” Thornton said. “He didn’t know who it was either. He actually yelled at their bench, ‘I appreciate it.’
“Those guys on their team chirp a lot. I don’t know if it is right when someone’s face is half across the other side of their face. But it is a tough game and people have to live with their actions. If you guys ever find out who it is don’t be afraid to send me a Christmas card.”
Here’s a video of the whole thing, starting with Thornton’s great scoring chance that was turned away by Corey Crawford:
Thornton isn’t the first player to hear from the Hawks after an injury, either. The Calgary Flames’ Brendan Morrison said he was taunted by the Hawks on March 2. He hurt his left knee when he was hit by Niklas Hjalmarsson and heard from the Hawks when he made it slowly off the ice.
“What was a little disappointing was coming off and guys from the Chicago bench being a little disrespectful,” Morrison told the Calgary Herald earlier this month. “That was uncalled for. But you do what you do and try and get off the ice. I don’t know if they understood what was going on but some young guys on their team were standing up and yelling. I don’t think it’s very professional. But they’ll learn.”