Now we have more evidence that they still don’t get it. Let’s pose the situation as a multiple choice question.

Q: Which is worse?

a) Taking a blind-side shot at the back of an opponent’s head in a way that inflicts a concussion, which more and more research suggests poses the threat of long-term neurological damage.

b) Making an obscene gesture – specifically, miming the act of fellatio – at an opponent.

Which is it? Violence resulting in potentially serious and lasting injury, or juvenile locker-room taunting? Hmmm.

The answer is … trick question. In the mind of the NHL’s alleged disciplinarian, Gary Bettman, the two are equivalent. In case A, Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson was assessed a two-game suspension for a dangerous head shot. In case B, Islanders defenseman James Wisniewski drew an identical two-game vacation for impersonating a 7th grader.

No system is ever going to be perfect, especially in a sport where the kinds of behavior to be discouraged include everything from “social” offenses like Wisniewski’s to dangerous, violent conduct like we see nearly every night. I used to officiate soccer, and it griped me to no end that the same penalty – a yellow card – applied to both dangerous play and unsportsmanlike conduct (and, in some cases, to procedural offenses such as kicking a ball away in order to deprive the other team of a scoring advantage). So I understand the realities facing officials, rulemakers and league personnel.

But I’m not asking for a perfect system – merely one that acknowledges that there’s a difference between being an asshole and a being a felon.

We don’t know for sure whether on-ice homicide would inspire greater outrage in Mr. Bettman than, say, mooning the crowd. But we don’t see any evidence that would tell us which way to bet, do we?