Sweden's Elias Salomonsson Couldn’t Wait To Get Suspended At World Juniors
One of the biggest tournaments on the hockey calendar — the World Junior Championship — is taking place right now over in Sweden. And Swedish defenceman Elias Salomonsson just couldn't wait to get some time off.
Salomonsson has been dealt a 1-game suspension after he boarded Latvian forward Emils Veckaktins just 25 seconds into the team's opening game,
On his first shift of the 2024 World Juniors, the Winnipeg Jets prospect decided to set the tone. Unfortunately, he unloaded what anyone who has ever watched or played hockey even a little knows is a dirty check on Veckaktins.
If a guy is going into the boards and all you can see are his jersey numbers, the last thing you do is that. It's simply a dangerous play
Unsurprisingly, the ref called a 5-minute major on the ice, but they did their due diligence by reviewing the play. Of course, they saw exactly what the rest of us saw: that it was absolutely a major penalty. Salomonson was told to hit the showers early.
Although, would you even need a shower if you only played about half a shift?
Fortunately, Veckaktins stayed in the game and logged over 17 minutes of ice time.
The Hit From Salmonsson Wasn't Predatory, But It Was Very Dumb
I don't think that anyone who saw that really thinks it was a predatory hit. It just seems like the excitement of representing his home country at home in front of a jam-packed arena got to him. It then led to what neurologists call a "brain fart."
Having Salomonsson — who plays for Skelleftea AIK in the Swedish Hockey League — would have been a big help for the host team. Fortunatley for them, they didn't need it and went on to trounce Latvia 6-0.
However, Sweden will be without Salomonsson when they face Germany on Thursday, and the Germans look formidable this year. They stunned Finland by winning 4-3 on Wednesday.
Their goalie Phillip Dietl also has one of the best pad setups I've ever seen. That has to count for something too.
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