Luke Armstrong's Blog

On March 8th, in a game between the Montreal Canadians and Boston Bruins, Zdeno Chara hit Max Pacioretty which resulted in Pacioretty suffering a cracked vertebra and severe concussion. The NHL decided the hit was not intentional and that the injury resulted from the collision with the glass stantion not the hit itself. No suspension was given, yet many third parties have decided to weigh in on the topic. One for example is Air Canada. The “chief executive officer ordered up a letter that demanded the National Hockey League end its passive stance toward player safety, backed by a threat that the airline would pull its sponsorship unless the NHL took measures to protect its players… But the league lashed out at the airline on Thursday for meddling in its internal matters, and suggested it could take its business elsewhere.” Clearly Air Canada was trying to establish themselves as “good” in the consumers eyes, but is it worth giving up a large partnership. As a Canadian airline it would hard to imagine taking its business away from the NHL, as hockey is almost part of an identity here in Canada. After the league responded Air Canada made no further comment. I believe that if this were a sincere action on AC’s part they should have pulled out of their deal, however that is not the case. Clearly this action was more for show than any real commitment. If a company is going to take a stance on an issue they better be prepared to stand up for their comments, not just shrink back and try to forget they ever said anything.