I Stand By Rask

The hockey world got a major shock today when Boston Bruins netminder Tuukka Rask announced he was leaving the bubble and the playoffs, opting to return home to Finland to be with his family rather than pursue a Stanley Cup with the Bruins. While this is a massive development if you're a Bruins fan, it has also sparked some rather ridiculous outrage among hockey fans that Rask is choosing family over a Stanley Cup. Let me lay this to rest right here and right now: I stand by Tuukka Rask's decision, and I hold him in the utmost respect for doing what's right rather than what's popular.

"I want to be with my teammates competing, but at this moment there are things more important than hockey in my life, and that is being with my family," Rask said in a statement. "I want to thank the Bruins and my teammates for their support and wish them success."

That's the last that should be said of his decision, and everyone should hope that everything is well with his family for him to make this decision. Instead, there are keyboard warrior's questioning his dedication to his team, his craft, and his job while being outraged. While I get that this was a surprise to many - INCLUDING THE BRUINS - it's time to check yourselves if you're one of these people, folks.

This is his family, the team with whom he has a lifetime contract. At no point should hockey ever be more important than family, and Rask deserves the same respect given to any other player who has decided that some things are more important than the fleeting glory of winning the Stanley Cup.

The newsflash is that Rask is already a Stanley Cup champion - no one can take that from him and no one can contest that. However, if his family needs him for any reason whatsoever, Rask doesn't need another ring other than his wedding ring to tell him what's more important in this world. Rask's decision needs no debate because he made the right choice.

I am hopeful there is nothing serious happening that caused Rask to leave the bubble as quickly as he did as he and his wife have a newborn daughter to go along with two other daughters. It's no secret that Rask wasn't feeling the playoff atmosphere in Toronto, stating several times that playing without fans felt like "exhibition games" and that he was having a "tough time being away in this environment."

"The priority for Tuukka at this point and time — and rightfully so — has to be his family, and we support that," Bruins' GM Don Sweeney said following the announcement, adding that Rask's family is healthy and safe. And at the end of the day, their families matter to these players as much as your family does to you. To question them on this is grossly inappropriate and entirely disgusting.

I look forward to seeing Tuukka Rask back in the Boston nets next season when the NHL returns, but I respect him for making a decision that is best for him and his family. I stand by Tuukka Rask.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!