If the jawing between Sidney Crosby and P.K. Subban early in the Stanley Cup Final was just gamesmanship, it’s now officially moved onto bad blood territory.

In Game 5, Crosby tussled with Subban in the first period and repeatedly pushed the defenseman’s head into the ice.

NBC’s Mike Milbury didn’t see anything wrong with Crosby’s play though, and didn’t just defend it, but applauded it.

“It was cagey,” Milbury said. “And Subban had it coming.”

Let’s forget for a minute that Crosby only got a two-minute minor on the play, because refs miss calls all the time, but to defend Crosby or anyone else for punching another player’s head into the ice is not just irresponsible, but part of the destructive hockey culture that tries to justify dangerous hits.

Milbury prides himself on being an old school hockey guy, who likes seeing old school hockey being played. His traditional, and frankly out dated views are an embarrassment to hockey, to players, to fans and the NHL as they try to clean up their image.

It’s hard not to read a double standard into Milbury’s comments, who also called Subban “a clown” for dancing on the ice during warmups. If there’s logic to Milbury’s comments, it’s certainly not present here.