On Kingston Frontenacs’ Ryan Hutchinson, viral videos and guilt

The timeline with Ryan Hutchinson's departure from the Kingston Frontenacs late last winter left a knot of guilt in one's stomach.

To anyone who knows how to work the Google on their Internet machine, the first point of reference with Hutchinson is the fine exit of Costanzian proportions he made while being escorted off the ice during a Fronts-Erie Otters game on Feb. 24. It was called an "epic tantrum," a "wild tantrum" and "the funniest hockey freakout you will see today." The epilogue was evident: Hutchinson, after first serving a three-game suspension assessed as a result of the incident, appeared in only one more game for Kingston and then went home.

Perhaps, on the outside, Hutchinson took the slings and arrows from his 15 minutes of 'shframe' in trade. Still, it was hard not to wonder what role the wide publicity the incident received played in what might have been in his departure from Ontario Hockey League. To that end, there's good news, as the 18-year-old is back with Kingston.

Hutchinson ("Without hockey in my life I basically felt like a loser") has resumed practising with Kingston.

From Doug Graham:

The incident isn't mentioned, but it almost feels like an elephant in the room. Speaking generally, there is a difference between how being made the object of fun affects a 27-year-old pro athlete and someone who was 17 at the time. It certainly could have contributed to Hutchinson feeling "confused" and deciding flight, just before the playoffs, was his recourse. It felt like a real shame — feel free to characterize this as concern trolling or liberal guilt talking — since this was a young person, not just someone who's a commodity. On the latter count, the burly blueliner who is listed at 6-foot-1 and 214 pounds had shown some modest promise over two seasons in Kingston. Hutchinson made the team as a 16-year-old rookie and generally played a sound defensive game for a rebuilding Frontenacs team. Moreover, this was also a U.S. player who had cashed in his U.S. college option by playing in the OHL, so there was a worry about a loss of athletic potential.

That is the way the Internet works, though. Ordinary people doing something outré with the so-called 'holy flurking schnit' factor, has always been the lifeblood of the media. The arrival of digital and social media didn't create that; it only put it up to 11. One just always hopes it's not going to have too large a sway on a young athlete's often fleeting emotional state. In sum, it's a good story that Ryan Hutchinson is giving the OHL another go.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet. Please address any questions, comments or concerns to btnblog@yahoo.ca.