Fighting in Hockey?

Just read an ESPN story about the 19 year old kid that Ovechkin knocked out/concussed last night, pretty crazy!

How do you guys/gals feel about fighting in the NHL? Should it just go away? I really like having fewer goons, less clutching/grabbing, and more open play. I think it makes for a more exciting game, but should fighting go away completely?

I feel bad for this kid, concussed in the playoffs, will miss at least a game, and we now better understand the long term ramifications of concussions. These players already are at a very high risk of concussion just playing the game, seems like fights are just an added risk that might not be necessary?

I’ve always thought it’s an interesting spectacle, because it’s one sport where they can do something at the professional level that’s not really possible at youth/college levels given the full facemask helmets. It’s just not really that feasible for players to get in a fistfight in the sport UNTIL they get to that level(or Europe/minors/juniors?).

What do you think?

I have to admit, I like the occasional fight in hockey.

Just my opinion but in a situation like you described I would like to see Ovechkin have to sit out as long as the 19 year old has too.
Now that being said it would be hard to enforce because how do you judge when the 19 year old is ready to play and who makes that call.

IF you really sit back and think about it.. Is it not the dumbest thing in all of pro sports?

Entertainment aside.. Completely aside.

First, the standard answer: It’s the Code, man. If you have to ask why, you don’t understand the Code.

I saw the game and even though Ovechkin is not known as a fighter in the NHL, he clearly had a big weight advantage over that kid. I’d guess Ove is 30 plus pounds heavier. So I don’t know what the kid was thinking except to be a hero and try to take #8 out of the game for 5 minutes as a way of trying to get his team back in it.

A knockout like that is very rare, but yes the league could make fighting go away completely if they wanted to. This incident may prompt some serious thinking on the part of the league, do they really want to continue to be the only professional sport outside of MMA and boxing that allows competitors to fight each other?

Seems to me like the NHL can’t continue on both roads. On one hand, they claim to be concerned and doing everything they can to prevent TBIs. And then to continue to allow two players to pummel each other in the head… Hmmm, seems like a bit of a conflict there.

Grouse

I like the occasional fights in Hockey but am glad there are fewer goons. But I don’t think Ovechkin should have to sit out at all. That kid asked if Ovi wanted to fight and was trying to get him to fight the whole series. I’m not saying he got what he deserved but should think twice next time before asking a vet to fight.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

Seems to me like the NHL can’t continue on both roads. On one hand, they claim to be concerned and doing everything they can to prevent TBIs. And then to continue to allow two players to pummel each other in the head… Hmmm, seems like a bit of a conflict there.

Grouse

The one initiating the fight could be suspended for a year. End of conflict.

I have never understood why street fighting is tolerated in any sport. Even in the “fighting sports” the participants are governed by a set of rules.

I’m not a fan of goons but YES, fighting should be allowed.

I compare it to hitting batters in baseball…there needs to be a form of respect and a way to let them know your not gonna get away with it!

It’s really not part of the game anymore and the # of fights has continued to drop over the decades to the rare event an actual fist swinging fight happens nowadays (most are grab fests with both players trying to end it via a body slam asap and then tell each other “good job” and go sit in the box) BUT terrible things can happen (Masterson) and my guess is if it ever does happen again, fighting will be banned from the game.

I’m honestly more surprised that players aren’t loosing fingers at the end of a fight when they are rolling on the ice and the officials skate in..

I’m not sure where I stand on this issue. But damn that kid got his a$$ whooped.
What was he thinking

I quit watching hockey. It’s soccer on ice and I like offense. The fighting is probably one of the only reasons they get the ratings to keep it on TV so it will continue until someone dies probably? If I want to watch fighting, I’ll dial up some UFC.

ClownColor wrote:

I’m not a fan of goons but YES, fighting should be allowed.

I compare it to hitting batters in baseball…there needs to be a form of respect and a way to let them know your not gonna get away with it!

X2. If some guy comes and cheap shots one of your “star” players, there are ramifications that come with that. As Grouse said, it’s code. I’m fine without all the goons from the past but I enjoy a good hockey fight!

Huntindave wrote:

I have never understood why street fighting is tolerated in any sport. Even in the “fighting sports” the participants are governed by a set of rules.

I’m not sure why you think its “street fighting”. Look street fighting up on YouTube, Brutal! They are more or less governed by “the code”. Once the fight goes to the ground, refs step in and stop it. Immediately! If the guys are just hugging and dancing around, they will stop it. You don’t really see cheap shots either. Just a good old toe to toe fight. Each guy gets to sit in the box for a quick 5 minutes and feel shame.

Looking back at the Ovi fight, yes the kid got his but whooped! He should know better than to pick on someone bigger than him in hockey. But, Columbus came back and blanked them 5-0 the next game. Revenge? Pride? Maybe, maybe not.

I thought it was stupid when the NHL decided to try and cut down on the fighting, but honestly I must not miss it and there are still the occasional fights.

Making fighting illegal would be the dumbest thing the league could do. The types of physical play and incidents that lead to frustration and anger in hockey are way more intense than any other sport. When you see fights in other sports it is the result of physicality and frustration an NHLer can face each shift.

In baseball brawls happen after bean balls and hard slides. 1 shift in hockey is like being brushed back and hit, sometimes several times. And it can be the equivalent of being slid into hard several times in a game. In basketball brawls usually erupt after hard and/or dirty plays. Again this happens every shift/game in hockey.

Rookies always try to earn some stripes by trying to take on a veteran player. Usually does not go well for them but fighting is already getting less and less. I dont see any reason to take it out of the game completely. More concussions happen from big legal checks compared to fighting no doubt. Every player knows what they are getting into from day one of being signed on.
Just my .02 though

“The types of physical play and incidents that lead to frustration and anger in hockey are way more intense than any other sport.”

How about football? An interior lineman gets pounded every play. There are some guys on the Wild that haven’t thrown a check in years.

Hockey got nastier as the equipment got better. Back when the players weren’t armor plated, before everybody had a catcher’s mask on…. people kept their sticks down.

S.R.

If you want to ban fighting in hockey you might as well ban it in boxing too. It’s 1/2 the reason people watch and 100% why some actually watch it.

biggill wrote:

If you want to ban fighting in hockey you might as well ban it in boxing too. It’s 1/2 the reason people watch and 100% why some actually watch it.

for sure in the 70’s & 80’s, but fights in the NHL are rare nowadays as it’s mostly a skill game now, the NHL realized this years ago and thus removed all of the clutching & grabbing that restricted the good players (mostly european) from showing the elite skillset. All of the heavyweights have been phased out of the league. Ryan Reeves is an enigma in that he’s a really good skater for his size and physicality and earns his icetime and is effective. He never gets into serious fights anymore because nobody is big enough to truly take him on.

I watched it happen and didn’t think it was really that big of a fight, kinda boring actually. Am I for or against hockey fights? I can’t answer that, but it’s entertaining.

Nobody was a bigger Hockey fan than me – until they cracked down on fighting, but I was raised on it.

Question – If hockey fans don’t like fighting, then why do the stand on their feet and cheer when a fight breaks out at a game? Sometimes more than when a goal is scored.

IMHO – I want to be entertained when I’m paying a bazillion $$ for parking, tickets and cocktails. If I want to watch hockey in it’s “purest” form, then I’ll go to a high school or college game.

Leave it alone. It is becoming less and less as teams rely more on speed and shooting vs. goonabilty nowadays. As a fan, I like an occasional fight. Love it when it is justified by a douche move and the player gets lit up. Self policing has a presence in all sports – hockey is just rougher than most.

As for making 8 sit for as long as the kid is out – dumb. Don’t start something if you cant deal with the consequences.

Ovechkin fought someone who was mutually fighting back and got the better of him. If you are a teenager giving up size to a grown man don’t engage yourself in a fist fight. I wouldn’t go punching an MMA fighter because they shoved/checked/slashed me or talked trash. I do not have a ton of sympathy. Maybe I’m a jerk, or maybe I’m just a realist. Common sense doesn’t always have to be mandated, regulated, or have laws attached.

As far as the entertainment value and league rules go, I’d like to see hockey stay as it is. There are a ton of casual hockey fans who love to see a few punches (rarely happens) and stand up and cheer in support. Fighting in the sport has long been a choice. If a player, team, or coaches don’t want fighting, don’t get involved and play through the antics that lead to fights.

100% they should keep fighting. Players know how it is, they know there can be consequences.

All the big leagues and the media covering them (ESPN, FOX, etc….) are a bunch of hypocrites. They all like to say the politically sensitive correct thing, but then on the next commercial break they are advertising an NFL game with huge hits. Or an NHL game with a fight sequence. Or an MLB game with a player charging the mound or flipping a bat.
Same crap with the NFL “celebrations”. How many times do they run a “Top 10 Celebrations” on Sportscenter? But then turn around and chastise players for getting a 15yard penalty for celebrating? Bunch of hypocrites.

Its what sells, or they would’nt include it in the ads.

I miss the days of Willie Plett and Al Secord, Dino Ciccarelli and Denis Savard fighting. It added a lot to the rivalry and anticipation of the game and over all intensity for the fans and the players. I noticed today that NHL.com doesn’t even have the replay of Ovi dropping the kid on it’s web site. They don’t want to promote it and would probably be just as happy if it were to stop all together.

It’s going away on it’s own no need for the NHL to ban it. Ovi got a lucky punch in. I can’t remember seeing anybody knocked out cold in a fight before and I’ve watched a lot of hockey.

We’ve come a long long way from when the goalies wore no head protection. Could you imagine that today?? Fighting is going the same way.

muskie-tim wrote:

Just my opinion but in a situation like you described I would like to see Ovechkin have to sit out as long as the 19 year old has too.
Now that being said it would be hard to enforce because how do you judge when the 19 year old is ready to play and who makes that call.

Did you see it happen? Moreover did you watch the kid the prior game? He hounded Ovechkin, axe chopping him from behind every chance he had in the previous game.

This altercations started the same way. Svechnikov hacking at his legs, trying to get into 8’s head. I am sure he was trying to take him off his game, it did not work. People say 8 is too big and should have recognized the age difference. Age, size means nothing when you are on the ice, nothing. IF someone is gonna chop at another player, they better be ready to face the consequences. To be honest the kid had this coming based on the stick work he was laying on ovechkin. I was surprised Ovechkin didn’t do anything prior.

For the most part, ovechkin was trying to skate awya from this situation as well but the kid wouldn’t go away. He got what he was asking for.

The questions was, is there a place for fighting, should it exist…. I am not sure. You have guys with sticks in their hands and no facial protection. Fights usually start when a code is broken, that is when someones stick gets up. They wont wear cages or shields so I dont think you will ever see it go away. Can you imagine what a football or basketball game would look like if those guys played the game with what amounts to a weapon in their hand? Heck baseball players even throw their bats at pitchers from time to time…..

Tom Sawvell wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>TheFamousGrouse wrote:</div>
Seems to me like the NHL can’t continue on both roads. On one hand, they claim to be concerned and doing everything they can to prevent TBIs. And then to continue to allow two players to pummel each other in the head… Hmmm, seems like a bit of a conflict there.

Grouse

The one initiating the fight could be suspended for a year. End of conflict.

And how do you determine that? The guys stick that came up or the check from behind? the first face rub ? Not to mention do you think the NHL will cut their own D off by suspending a player like Ovechkin who has RARELY ever fought? what you are saying is Gretzky should have been kicked out a season because he punched (slapped) broten first?

Seriously? The league is cracking down on dumb, careless play. While I dont think the suspension in some cases are extreme enough, they are suspending guys.

I think it’ll eventually get weeded out of the game based on its own momentum (or lack of it). Not long ago, there used to be a player or two on every team that specialized in it (Derek Boogaard is a good example). The game has changed. Its a speed and skill game now and there simply isn’t room to waste a game day roster spot for a goon that cannot contribute elsewhere. If a player still wants to specialize in fighting, they better be able to contribute to other areas of the game now too (like scoring goals, killing penalties, etc). A good example of that is Wayne Simmonds. Dude can fight and has put up 25+ goals every year for a number of years. A guy like that is worth keeping around for more than one purpose of an occasional fight.

muskie-tim wrote:

Just my opinion but in a situation like you described I would like to see Ovechkin have to sit out as long as the 19 year old has too.
Now that being said it would be hard to enforce because how do you judge when the 19 year old is ready to play and who makes that call.

Did you see it happen? Moreover did you watch the kid the prior game? He hounded Ovechkin, axe chopping him from behind every chance he had in the previous game.

This altercations started the same way. Svechnikov hacking at his legs, trying to get into 8’s head. I am sure he was trying to take him off his game, it did not work. People say 8 is too big and should have recognized the age difference. Age, size means nothing when you are on the ice, nothing. IF someone is gonna chop at another player, they better be ready to face the consequences. To be honest the kid had this coming based on the stick work he was laying on ovechkin. I was surprised Ovechkin didn’t do anything prior.

For the most part, ovechkin was trying to skate awya from this situation as well but the kid wouldn’t go away. He got what he was asking for.

The questions was, is there a place for fighting, should it exist…. I am not sure. You have guys with sticks in their hands and no facial protection. Fights usually start when a code is broken, that is when someones stick gets up. They wont wear cages or shields so I dont think you will ever see it go away. Can you imagine what a football or basketball game would look like if those guys played the game with what amounts to a weapon in their hand? Heck baseball players even throw their bats at pitchers from time to time…..

eyeguy507 wrote:

I quit watching hockey. It’s soccer on ice and I like offense. The fighting is probably one of the only reasons they get the ratings to keep it on TV so it will continue until someone dies probably? If I want to watch fighting, I’ll dial up some UFC.

Ignorance is Bliss but I respect your disdain for soccer….

You serious? comparing hockey to soccer is the dumbest thing I have ever read on this site.

Men vs pansies. Hockey players are playing with broken bones, severed/torn cartilage, no whining, no crying. 4 nights ago in an opening round game, Joe pavelski scored a goal, a slap shot from Brent Burns off his MOUTH. You would not have known it happened, although he didnt celebrate the goal. He simply skated off the ice. He lost 4 teeth, 3 more cracked off. He missed about 4 shifts total. He returned and played the remainder of the game with blood pouring form his mouth and a new full face shield. Numerous players just playing out of sheer will in the fastest game in the world. They are warriors playing for the up but they play that way because it is the code. No pansies allowed.

A soccer player trips on a blade of grass and they roll around for 10 minutes then get carried off on a stretcher. They return and flex the opposite leg that was “Hurt”.

seriously, do you read what you type? OR maybe just need to get in a boat cuz you are going stir crazy?

LOL well played wormdunker

I do need to get my boat out you dam right about that! Stupid work is in the way, river is high and fast and opener ain’t coming for another month. I compare hockey to soccer based on low scoring games not style of play. Sometimes I don’t have time to elaborate.