Scottie Upshall

Blues player gets blasted by strobe light while in penalty box

Published Apr. 4, 2017 9:02 a.m. ET

Pete Blackburn

A few arenas around the NHL set off a strobe light when the home team gets awarded a power play, presumably in hopes that it'll help fans get jacked up to root their team on during the man-advantage.

One of those arenas is the Pepsi Center in Colorado, where the Avalanche hosted the St. Louis Blues last week. After taking a penalty during that game, veteran Blues forward Scottie Upshall learned the hard way that you're going to want to avert your eyes from the jumbotron while that strobe light is starting the party.

Upshall was likely trying to watch a replay of his infraction from the penalty box when the strobe light put an absolute beating on him. The helpless Upshall tried to shield himself from the aggressive light show and was visibly annoyed.

It's seems pretty humorous at first but it's one of those things that's also kind of a little concerning, especially considering the effects it could have on someone with light sensitivity. Considering how many players in the league have a concussion history at this point, there's probably more than a few players that shouldn't be subjected to a blinding strobe.

It's a little unnecessary and I'd imagine there are other ways you can get the crowd going without bringing in the slight risk of migraines or seizures. Maybe arenas choose to use it to give their team an extra bit of home-ice advantage but, if that's the case, it certainly hasn't worked out too well for the Avs this year.

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Scottie Upshall

St. Louis Blues

National Hockey League