OT: Fighting in Hockey

Submitted by Maizerage11 on

Martin's punch on Kearney this week triggered a discussion yesterday about sportsmanship and toughness.  It seemed to me that there were two sides to this discussion.

1) People defending/applauding Martin's toughness and aggression.  People argue that fighting is a part of hockey.  Maybe Martin was a little over the top but this is part of the sports.

2) People assserting that this is not the kind of behavior that we want representing the Unviersity of Michigan.

Althought I understand both of these opinions, I feel that there is a larger issue at play here.  That problem is fighting in hockey. 

Fighting is accepted as a part of the game, especially at the pro level.  This attitude/philosophy permiates through the various levels of play.  I had my hockey career ended on punch similar to the one Marting through.  I legally checked a guy and he turned around and punched my head into the boards knocking me out cold.   The dissapointment of having my hockey careeer taken away from because someone was frustrated is tough to swallow.  

I understand that agression and violence is  a part of sports.   I played 4 years of college lacrosse, and sure people got hurt from violent hits, but atleast they were in the flow of the game.  A brawl after the whistle is simple not an option in the sport of lacrosse.

I think the NHL needs to take stand on this issue.  There should not be a penalty for fighting because fighting is not an option.  When the whistle blows the play is dead.  Anything after that gets you tossed immidietly, with a pending suspension.  We have enough head injuries already, so lets get rid of the sensless ones.

 

 

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sharklover

January 18th, 2016 at 7:09 PM ^

I would like to see less fighting. 

I'd support stronger penalties and zero tolerance, but we'd need to see better and more consistent enforcement of existing rules. Fights will always break out when players view no-calls and inconsistent refereeing as injustices that impact their well-being.

I don't think Martin would have thrown that punch if he would have felt assured that justice would be meted out to the OSU players that were getting cheap shots in against his team. I don't think he should get away with throwing that punch, which was admittedly a cheap shot. But there were a lot of chippy, bush-league hits and stick work that was being directed at the Michigan players in the last five minutes of the game that were sure to go unpunished. To completely eliminate fights you have to penalize all of that stuff. I don't know if the NHL, the NCAA, or the Big Ten are ready to throw the number of fines and suspensions around to achieve that end that would be necessary.

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MGoStrength

January 18th, 2016 at 7:38 PM ^

Even if a cheap shot is in retaliation to another cheap shot.  That's uncalled for and where injureis occur.  But, people rarely get seriously injured real in fights with two willing combatants in hockey.  A fair fight is all good in hocky in my book and if one party refuses to defend themselves after taking a run at an opponent, then so be it, that's their consequence for their behavior.

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taistreetsmyhero

January 18th, 2016 at 8:34 PM ^

The issue is not fighting in hockey. It's just silly to hear people talking about the self policing of players on the ice and then at the same time defending a sucker punch. There's a couple rules that transcend all humanity: don't hit a man in the nuts unless he's trying to attack you, and don't punch a person who isn't looking. If someone punches you in the nuts, and you sucker punch them back, you're still as much of a piece of shit as the first person.



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sharklover

January 18th, 2016 at 8:46 PM ^

What if you walk down the same street 4 times a year and the same guy attempts to kick you in the nuts every time you go past him? The cops are standing by. They see the guy kick you in the nuts, but they take no action.

Would you not be justified in retaliating for the sake of defending yourself and preventing further abuse in the future?

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MGoDillon

January 18th, 2016 at 8:44 PM ^

Fighting is never good. Entertaining? Yes, until somebody gets seriously hurt. But it sets such a bad example and overall is just not what adults do



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drjaws

January 18th, 2016 at 8:53 PM ^

In my personal opinion, fighting is part of the game, and I enjoy it. And many of the players, I venture to say well over half, do too (maybe not publicly due to backlash).

I may be wrong as I played played for years in the 80s/90s so attitudes may have changed among players. Sometimes a good bout of fisticuffs can change a game.



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Crentski

January 18th, 2016 at 9:05 PM ^

is totally okay, because it's just hockey. If a football player hits someone like that, then he is definitely a thug. I wonder why such difference exists?

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late night BTB

January 19th, 2016 at 9:41 AM ^

There'd be fewer cheap shots ala Martin if the full face visors are taken away.  Just like in football, adding more plastic more places actually makes things more dangerous.

Without a full face on, Martin suckers Kearney, and then gets clobbered by the rest of the OSU team, either immediately after or the next time they meet.  

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