Street
Fighting Man!!! G-Sevvvvvvvvvvvon!!!
On Monday
night, something happened that captivated both Henny and I. At the start of the
Rangers-Devils game, six guys starting fighting as soon as the puck dropped.
You knew it was coming as the Devils started a line of enforcers (The Devils as
the road team had to put their lineup out first) instead of their top line. The
Rangers countered by having a defenseman known for fighting take the faceoff
with two other tough guys as his wingers. It was riveting television as three
pairs of guys tried to beat the crap out of one another. You didn’t know which
fight to watch until one duo were both bleeding. After the skirmishes ended,
both coaches were cursing at one another, forty penalty minutes were doled out
in the first three seconds of the game, and the crowd was amped up, including
myself. Unfortunately, the media did not see it that way and portrayed it as
another black eye for the sport.
For the
last few years, many sports personalities have stated how hockey needs to
abolish fighting. They claim it is barbaric and has no place in the game. Three
enforcers (Derek Boogaard, Rick Rypien, and Wade Belak) committed
suicide over the summer. Many contributed their suicides due to the
direct/indirect impact of fighting (the top three themes were brain injuries
from fighting, substance abuse to erase the emotional and physical pain, and
clinical depression.) Most critics will argue that hockey is the only sport to
allow fighting without an automatic ejection. I am not one of those critics and
believe fighting does serve a role in hockey.
Perhaps
it’s the culture of the game, but fighting has always been a part of the NHL.
Whether it’s to defend a cheap shot on a star player or to whip the crowd/team
into a frenzy, people have thrown down the gloves and made it rain with
punches. There has been a lot of bad blood between the Rangers and Devils throughout
the years. This year has been no exception as we have seen many fights and
questionable hits. They had fought each other 16 times in five games before
Monday’s affair. Monday wasn’t the culmination of their hatred of one another,
just another chapter in a long saga.
The NHL has
addressed fighting over the years, creating rules to prevent fighting during
time stoppages, prevent fighting in the end of blowouts, and prevent a third
guy from entering a fight. They are looking into the long-term health issues
plaguing former enforcers. Despite my joy in Monday’s fight, many NHL officials
and commentators agree there is no place in the sport for the premeditated
fight. They mentioned that was a little excessive. However, they have yet to
stop fighting from taking place altogether.
There are
quite a few people who would not have played professional hockey if fighting
was not allowed. Tie Domi played 16 years in the league. His career totals
include 104 goals and over 3500 penalty minutes. Teams didn’t acquire him
hoping for a sudden burst of offense. They signed him so he could beat up
nerds. The NHL players’ union realizes this, and will strive to keep fighting
in the league. Plus, the enforcers are doing this voluntarily. No one is
putting a gun to their heads and making them fight.
Lastly, the
fans love it. The casual fan wants to see awesome goals, big hits, and fights.
Just like the casual fan watches NASCAR for the accidents. Hockey is a blue
collar sport, watched by blue collar fans. The NHL realizes how loyal their
fans are. After the lockout, the fans felt disrespected and took it out on
their teams. The league had to win the fans back with lowered ticket prices and
rules to make the game more exciting. Why would the sport take away one of the
main attraction for fans, who pay top dollar for seats and merchandise?
As much as
I love Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon on “Pardon the Interruption”, they
need to shut their mouths on this issue. Fighting in hockey is just as natural
as curveballs in baseball or players having kids out of wedlock in basketball.
It’s not the main part of the game, but it serves it purpose. No one fights
against their will. They fight to stick up for their teammates, just like a
pitcher will retaliate with a beanball when one of his hitters gets plunked.
For my money, the best thing in sports is the rare occurrence when two goalies
duke it out. I’d take a goalie fight over a hand job any day of the week, twice
on Sundays.
-Written by Marcus Boyd
I do like the fighting, and would try to start one every time I played street hockey with Hutta, but it is getting a little out of control. It's almost to the point to where it is becoming a gimmick to draw in viewers. Most people don't know how awesome hockey is to watch in person, perhaps the best sport of the four major ones, but they shouldn't be going with the hopes of seeing a fight.
ReplyDelete