Ban Fighting in Hockey?

[troublesome one]

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...90210/20090210

Whatdya think, eh?

[hairypumper]

Yeah, let's get rid of football, boxing, and ultimate fighting too. We could replace them with knitting, hopscotch, and jump rope. (Helmets required of course). People pay to watch hockey as it is, money talks.

[Charles]

I was reading and listening all day yesterday on NHL.com about this. Most GM's say NO WAY. I can understand trying to make it safer, but then again i cant. fighting in this sport is WAY down compared to the days (70's & 80's) when they were fighting before games in warmups and going into the stands. And the so called staged fights cant really be judged due to the fact that you WILL prove your point and make a statment to someone who cheap shotted your top scorer or took him out, but it may be weeks or months the next time you are on the ice at the same time with him... LEAVE IT BE, IMO if they start regulating everything, just like our government, crap hits the fan. next thing ya know, they wont be able to slap shoot, or check anyone. you can get hurt just as easy from a hard shot or a nice clean BIG hit.

[matt_s]

For the most part, the Europeans have managed to take fighting out of Hockey on their side of the pond. I don't think fighting adds or detracts from the game. I don't have an issue with fighting from an injury side. It's been a while since somebody was seriously injured in a hockey fight. More get injured in the things that lead up to the fights.

Fighting is way down and I suggest at this point we just let it die a natural death. I think it will work itself out of the game naturally over time.

[Charles]

well, yes. fighting has died down greatly. BUT, you HAVE to keep it. its a bigger part of the game than most think. if it is completely done with, you'll get more stick work to the head and more cheap shots because the cheapshotter wont worry about getting what they deserve. It changes momentum more than you think also. Back in the day, as one GM stated yesterday, fighting picked up in the playoffs. if you won the first 3 or 4 fights, you more than likley will win that series.... now, there is no fighting in the playoffs. i love hockey, if they keep pushing fighting out of the game, the sport will continue to lose fans interest. more players and GM's want it to stay so what does that tell you? you need the fighters to have your back in a sport the has more weapons than any. a sport that uses non-stop skills, and action at every moment of the game... this game, respectfully, is one of the most athletic sports out of them all. if you disagree, then you do not watch it. It would be no different if they tried taking skates out of the game last year when one cut the neck and almost killed a player. This year in the OHL, a player died from his head hitting the ice after a fight. its the players CHOICE to fight, and to take the helmet off. more broken hands happen than death. i just dont see why the hell they think they have to change everything after so many years. but hey, go ahead and kill the sport...

[michael medeski]

part of the fun of watching is for the fights. i'm not a huge hockey fan, but it would be boring if there were no fights. it is not as fast paced as football, as far as scoring goes. it's more like the other football, soccer. it would be a shame if they get rid of fighting. the ice is slick and dangerous, so is that puck when it comes flying from a slapshot. maybe they should play hockey on a grass field with a soft inflatable ball. that would be nice and safe.

[Charles]

The only thing i will disagree with on your post micheal, it is much more fast paced than football, only IMO tho It take so much energey, thats why they have so many line changes.... a good player only plays 20 minutes a game.... i love football too, and it obviesly has more hitting... but hockey is underrated... i'll watch with fighting or with no fighting, but alot of fans prolly wouldnt, you got that right!

[james_t]

Maybe they should keep the fighting and ban the hockey.

[Charles]

Maybe they should keep the fighting and ban the hockey.

i went to a fight one night and a hockey game broke out...

[michael medeski]

The only thing i will disagree with on your post micheal, it is much more fast paced than football, only IMO tho It take so much energey, thats why they have so many line changes.... a good player only plays 20 minutes a game.... i love football too, and it obviesly has more hitting... but hockey is underrated... i'll watch with fighting or with no fighting, but alot of fans prolly wouldnt, you got that right!

i was saying as far as scoring goes. when you watch a hockey game it is real fast paced, they fly around the ice. almost too fast to keep track of what is going on. they are all so good, it seems to me that it takes forever for a team to score, especially when you have good goal keepers. the fights kind of make up for that slow scoring IMO.

[kingster]

They could try ultimate fighting on ice!

[cynicalfoe]

Perhaps just an increase in the penalty time would be sufficient to cut down the fighting. Example might be if you drop your gloves to fight it would be a one or two game suspension and if you actually fight it would be a four game suspension. Fights would still happen and would have the appreciation of the fans but just not as many.

[Charles]

Perhaps just an increase in the penalty time would be sufficient to cut down the fighting. Example might be if you drop your gloves to fight it would be a one or two game suspension and if you actually fight it would be a four game suspension. Fights would still happen and would have the appreciation of the fans but just not as many.

You cant do that. teams would stop carrying fighters and more stick work would go on. Say they fight, and get a game misconduct and a 4 game suspension... not only will a team be short, but add on a 2:00 instagation onto that and your team is short handed. it'll mess up the flow of the games and more poeple will get injured... it is too important to start adding dumb suspensions. IMO of course,

[cynicalfoe]

You cant do that. teams would stop carrying fighters and more stick work would go on. Say they fight, and get a game misconduct and a 4 game suspension... not only will a team be short, but add on a 2:00 instagation onto that and your team is short handed. it'll mess up the flow of the games and more poeple will get injured... it is too important to start adding dumb suspensions. IMO of course,

Yes I do see your point, they would actually start playing hockey and we all know how boring that would be.

[Charles]

Yes I do see your point, they would actually start playing hockey and we all know how boring that would be.

So the only non-boring part of hockey to you is fighting? My point is, IF THEY TOOK FIGHTING OUT, YOU WOULD GET MORE INJURIES. more stick work, more baseball swings to the face... more cheap hits, ect. They DO play GREAT hockey as it is, BECAUSE they have "policeman" protecting their star players....

[evilkumquat]

I always wondered why they beat around the bush so much in professional hockey and don't just equip the players with axes...

[Charles]

I always wondered why they beat around the bush so much in professional hockey and don't just equip the players with axes...

That is what their sticks will be used for if fighting is banned... star players need protected. everyone look into fighting, what it was, how much, when it happened, and compare it to now.... you find it is MUCH more "safer" and less often now-n-days. it's plain and simple, this could mess up the game BIG time.

[cynicalfoe]

So the only non-boring part of hockey to you is fighting? My point is, IF THEY TOOK FIGHTING OUT, YOU WOULD GET MORE INJURIES. more stick work, more baseball swings to the face... more cheap hits, ect. They DO play GREAT hockey as it is, BECAUSE they have "policeman" protecting their star players....

I did not say that that about fighting and it was more of a sarcastic remark. So more stick work to you is the cheap shots instead of puck control and good passing. All the things that you are stating have penalties attached. No matter what you do there will always be fights and not just in hockey. I do find an occasional fight very entertaining but I also would rather watch a good hard hitting game. Your point is not valid to me because fighting will never leave completely and sometimes ya just have to fight.

[evilkumquat]

I just don't understand why fighting is seemingly allowed (and indeed, expected) in hockey where such actions would result in suspension or banning players in other sports.

I mean, who goes to a basketball game eager to see a fight?

Who goes to a football game expecting a brawl?

Why would anyone want to see a professional baseball game?

Yet, for some reason, hockey gets a pass in unsportsmanlike (and potentially illegal) assaults.

[matt_s]

...it is not as fast paced as football, as far as scoring goes. it's more like the other football, soccer...

It's not as fast paced as football??? Even if you are considering just the scoring issues, I'm not sure how you can say that with a straight face...

In football you may get a score every 10 to 20 minutes (real time, not clock time) but you may have only see 6 plays in that entire time. How is that faster than a sport that has continuous play.

I think the only reason that football gets the nod on this is because of scoreboard inflation. A single score there can net the team up to 6 points.

The Wings lost (unfortunately) a game the other day that was 8 to 2 I think. That means that the puck went into the net 10 times. I can think of plenty football games where 10 touchdowns were not scored.