NHL: Florida Panthers at Vancouver Canucks - Source: Imagn — Henrik Sedin challenged NHL's decision to suspend Aaron Rome in June 2011 (Source: Imagn)

When Henrik Sedin questioned NHL's decision to suspend Aaron Rome after controversial hit on Nathan Horton

Modified Apr 04, 2025 06:05 GMT

During the 2011 Stanley Cup, Henrik Sedin disagreed with the NHL’s decision to suspend Aaron Rome for four games. NHL levied the suspension after Rome’s late hit on Nathan Horton in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

During the first period of the game, Horton passed the puck before Rome delivered the hit. Horton hit his head on the ice and was then stretchered off and taken to the hospital. Horton suffered a severe concussion and missed the rest of the series.

The NHL suspended Rome the next day, stating the hit was unnecessary. Henrik Sedin was the Canucks captain at that time. He defended Rome, saying the punishment was too harsh.

"We disagree with the decision, and it was a clean hit," Sedin said, via ESPN. "Talking to Aaron was extremely emotional. When you get to this point in the playoffs, you want to be a part of it on the ice, and Rome didn't deserve what he got."

Many Canucks players believed the suspension was unfair. Some thought the NHL reacted this way because Horton was an important player for Boston. Before the punishment, Henrik Sedin had mentioned that the hit was not from the blindside.

"It's not fun. I hope he's OK," Sedin said, via ESPN. "It's never fun to see a guy go down like that. I saw it on the big screen. I haven't really seen the replay, but from what I saw I thought it was a late hit, but I don't think it was a blindside... You don't like to see a guy laid out like that. But Romer is an honest player. It wasn't blindside, just a little late."

Rome missed the rest of the series, but Boston won the Stanley Cup in seven games. Horton later joined his teammates for the celebration.

Canucks coach joined Henrik Sedin in defending Aaron Rome's hit

Apart from Henrik Sedin, Vancouver Canucks coach at that time, Alain Vigneault also defended Aaron Rome. Vigneault said the hit was not dirty and was part of hockey’s physical nature.

"I don't think that's the hit that the league is trying to take out of the game. This is a physical game, you have big guys. Fraction of a second to decide what's happening out there. It's very unfortunate," Vigneault said. "You never want to see that. But this is a physical game."

The Bruins used the incident as motivation and won Game 3, 8-1. They went on to secure their sixth Stanley Cup, ending a 39-year drought in 2011.

About the author

Ankit is an NHL journalist at Sportskeeda with 3 years of experience as a travel writer. His interest in ice hockey was piqued after watching Sidney Crosby play and he has been passionately following the game since then. Ankit admires Crosby’s personality and hockey IQ, and when he crossed the 1,500 points tally, Ankit was among the biggest fans to celebrate the occasion.

An Edmonton Oilers fan because of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, Ankit also admires the Pittsburgh Penguins due to Crosby and the Colorado Avalanche for Nathan MacKinnon. He is also a fan of Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Orr, while John Tortorella is his favorite coach of all time due to his outspoken personality.

Holding a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature, Ankit believes his education has helped him develop a knack for presenting information in a precise and compelling manner. He only sources information from credible avenues and trusted people from his network for his articles.

When he is not watching or writing about the NHL, Ankit loves listening to music and reading books.

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