Hockey Fights: Should They Be Banned?
By Jose Negron
Athletes in any sport must be extremely conditioned and have a competitive nature that will allow them to separate themselves from the others. When it comes to contact sports, games like hockey and football reign supreme.
The game of hockey is a sport that comes with a long list of risks. It is a fast-paced and physical game that has brought a lot of controversy and debate along with it. I believe that fighting in the game of hockey should be disallowed by the National Hockey League. By the NHL banning hockey, it would open the door for more safety efforts to be made within youth hockey.
When I was in grade school, I attended my first Pittsburgh Penguins game with my dad at Mellon Arena in the city of Pittsburgh. I was an excited, young Pens fan who had never been as close as I was to the action, only seeing what I saw live on the television screen. Late in the game with the Penguins tied 1-1 with the Detroit Red Wings, a play stopped as a scrum began behind the Red Wings' goal. Two players dropped their gloves and began exchanging fists. I knew this was part of the game, but I had never experienced the live reaction.
Fans screamed things like, “Kill him, or “Send that piece of crap back to Detroit.”
As a young boy, I wasn’t sure how to react to two huge hockey players punching each other as if the other was a big punching bag, but as I said, I knew this was part of the game, so I let it go. As I grew older, I became fond of the fighting in the game of hockey. I’ve always known that it was part of the game, but I’ve always been concerned about the cost of these actions from the player’s point of view and what could be done to cut down on the punishment athletes endure on a daily basis.
A lot of the controversy in hockey has to do with hits to the head and illegal checks into the boards, and how these hits could be minimized because many players receive concussions. Penalties and game misconducts are given for illegal hits; however, it doesn’t seem these penalties are of great concern in the game. Nevertheless, many hockey analysts and sports writers have been in a long debate over whether fighting should be outlawed in the game. Fighting in hockey has become a big part of this physical game.
Many incidents have been reported in which minor league hockey coaches were suspended for exposing players to concussions while teaching them how to fight. In the pee wee hockey system, fighting should not be tolerated, and it starts with the coaches and the parents. Coaches should teach their players at a young age to play with a passion and play the game the right way, meaning the players should avoid fights.
The physical damage that players endure when fighting in the middle of a hockey game isn’t quite the issue here. Cuts and bruises heal, but the head injuries that fighting causes are a much bigger concern. Many former NHL enforcers have passed away in the last five years from drugs, alcohol, depression, and suicide, including Derick Brassard, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak. Many have thought these deaths may have had something to do with these players’ roles on the ice for their respective teams.
All three players were known as enforcers on the ice. The goal of an enforcer is to be the tough guy, sticking up for teammates and dropping the gloves and fighting players if necessary. It is a thought that maybe the blows to the head these known enforcers received may have caused not just physical, but mental problems. I understand that fighting in hockey is a huge part of the game. I can honestly say that I personally love to see tough athletes drop the gloves and engage in a battle of fisticuffs. The thing to remember here is that these athletes are also human beings.
In "The Mental Health of NHL Enforcers: Time to Ban Fighting in Hockey?" author Paul Caggiano wrote, “Enforcers suffer the brunt of these issues because their job is a lot less glamorous than the superstar scorer. They play maybe five to seven minutes a night each time they are out there, wanting to chip in a goal, but more than likely not doing so.
"They live to fight, and without it, would not have a job in the NHL. When they win, they are revered. When they lose, they are washed up in the eyes of fans,” Caggiano stated.
Fighting has been glamorized in the media, on the Internet, and in movies. In 2011, The movie “Goon” was released and depicted the life of a hockey enforcer. The film was gory and gruesome and gave its audience a good look at the pain these players go through. The main character in the film goes through personal problems and finds himself in an unstable state mentally and physically.
I’m not quite sure if this film’s goal was to put fighting in a positive or a negative light, but it did get me thinking about what these men go through. It made me think about the fact that they are human beings with families who only do their job in order to put food on the table. They entertain fans with their brutal actions, but the cost shouldn’t be their lives.
As tough as it is to say, I don’t think fighting will ever be banned in the game of hockey. Hockey is a sport that has always included a lot of passion and toughness. Unfortunately, fighting has, and always will be, a huge part of the sport. There are many enforcers in the National Hockey League, and with fighting being banned, teams wouldn’t have much use for them.
I just hope that it won’t require another player in the National Hockey League to die as a result of head injuries for hockey players, fans, and management to realize that it may be time to be a little more strict when it comes to the matter. I want to see the day when hockey will get back to being about who is the best on the ice.
The Winnipeg Jets, who signed Rick Rypien before he passed away at 27 from an apparent suicide, have recently joined in the movement known as the “Bell Let’s Talk” campaign. This movement is aimed at ending silence against mental health issues and removing the stigma that may accompany such issues. I believe that the NHL and the Winnipeg Jets teaming up with this campaign definitely is a step in the right direction. This is a stepping stone to a possible day when the game of hockey can be more about passing, deking and scoring rather than illegal hits to the head, cheap shots, and fighting.
Jose Negron is a sophomore English major with a concentration in journalism at California University of Pennsylvania. See Jose's personal blog here.
Athletes in any sport must be extremely conditioned and have a competitive nature that will allow them to separate themselves from the others. When it comes to contact sports, games like hockey and football reign supreme.
The game of hockey is a sport that comes with a long list of risks. It is a fast-paced and physical game that has brought a lot of controversy and debate along with it. I believe that fighting in the game of hockey should be disallowed by the National Hockey League. By the NHL banning hockey, it would open the door for more safety efforts to be made within youth hockey.
When I was in grade school, I attended my first Pittsburgh Penguins game with my dad at Mellon Arena in the city of Pittsburgh. I was an excited, young Pens fan who had never been as close as I was to the action, only seeing what I saw live on the television screen. Late in the game with the Penguins tied 1-1 with the Detroit Red Wings, a play stopped as a scrum began behind the Red Wings' goal. Two players dropped their gloves and began exchanging fists. I knew this was part of the game, but I had never experienced the live reaction.
Fans screamed things like, “Kill him, or “Send that piece of crap back to Detroit.”
As a young boy, I wasn’t sure how to react to two huge hockey players punching each other as if the other was a big punching bag, but as I said, I knew this was part of the game, so I let it go. As I grew older, I became fond of the fighting in the game of hockey. I’ve always known that it was part of the game, but I’ve always been concerned about the cost of these actions from the player’s point of view and what could be done to cut down on the punishment athletes endure on a daily basis.
A lot of the controversy in hockey has to do with hits to the head and illegal checks into the boards, and how these hits could be minimized because many players receive concussions. Penalties and game misconducts are given for illegal hits; however, it doesn’t seem these penalties are of great concern in the game. Nevertheless, many hockey analysts and sports writers have been in a long debate over whether fighting should be outlawed in the game. Fighting in hockey has become a big part of this physical game.
Many incidents have been reported in which minor league hockey coaches were suspended for exposing players to concussions while teaching them how to fight. In the pee wee hockey system, fighting should not be tolerated, and it starts with the coaches and the parents. Coaches should teach their players at a young age to play with a passion and play the game the right way, meaning the players should avoid fights.
The physical damage that players endure when fighting in the middle of a hockey game isn’t quite the issue here. Cuts and bruises heal, but the head injuries that fighting causes are a much bigger concern. Many former NHL enforcers have passed away in the last five years from drugs, alcohol, depression, and suicide, including Derick Brassard, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak. Many have thought these deaths may have had something to do with these players’ roles on the ice for their respective teams.
All three players were known as enforcers on the ice. The goal of an enforcer is to be the tough guy, sticking up for teammates and dropping the gloves and fighting players if necessary. It is a thought that maybe the blows to the head these known enforcers received may have caused not just physical, but mental problems. I understand that fighting in hockey is a huge part of the game. I can honestly say that I personally love to see tough athletes drop the gloves and engage in a battle of fisticuffs. The thing to remember here is that these athletes are also human beings.
In "The Mental Health of NHL Enforcers: Time to Ban Fighting in Hockey?" author Paul Caggiano wrote, “Enforcers suffer the brunt of these issues because their job is a lot less glamorous than the superstar scorer. They play maybe five to seven minutes a night each time they are out there, wanting to chip in a goal, but more than likely not doing so.
"They live to fight, and without it, would not have a job in the NHL. When they win, they are revered. When they lose, they are washed up in the eyes of fans,” Caggiano stated.
Fighting has been glamorized in the media, on the Internet, and in movies. In 2011, The movie “Goon” was released and depicted the life of a hockey enforcer. The film was gory and gruesome and gave its audience a good look at the pain these players go through. The main character in the film goes through personal problems and finds himself in an unstable state mentally and physically.
I’m not quite sure if this film’s goal was to put fighting in a positive or a negative light, but it did get me thinking about what these men go through. It made me think about the fact that they are human beings with families who only do their job in order to put food on the table. They entertain fans with their brutal actions, but the cost shouldn’t be their lives.
As tough as it is to say, I don’t think fighting will ever be banned in the game of hockey. Hockey is a sport that has always included a lot of passion and toughness. Unfortunately, fighting has, and always will be, a huge part of the sport. There are many enforcers in the National Hockey League, and with fighting being banned, teams wouldn’t have much use for them.
I just hope that it won’t require another player in the National Hockey League to die as a result of head injuries for hockey players, fans, and management to realize that it may be time to be a little more strict when it comes to the matter. I want to see the day when hockey will get back to being about who is the best on the ice.
The Winnipeg Jets, who signed Rick Rypien before he passed away at 27 from an apparent suicide, have recently joined in the movement known as the “Bell Let’s Talk” campaign. This movement is aimed at ending silence against mental health issues and removing the stigma that may accompany such issues. I believe that the NHL and the Winnipeg Jets teaming up with this campaign definitely is a step in the right direction. This is a stepping stone to a possible day when the game of hockey can be more about passing, deking and scoring rather than illegal hits to the head, cheap shots, and fighting.
Jose Negron is a sophomore English major with a concentration in journalism at California University of Pennsylvania. See Jose's personal blog here.