NHL hockey fights

I'm watching the Toronto Vs. Pittsburg game right now, and the refs allowed a fight between two players go on and on until they tired themselves out. It felt like the fight was planned "entertainment". It was so weird.

I used to be a big NHL fan, but haven't watched a game for a year or so. I don't remember fights ever being allowed to continue much beyond a few punches. This went on and on and on...

Did anyone else see this and find it weird??

It's funny that you made this thread, because my husband and I were watching hockey fights on Youtube over the weekend! We went to a game (not NHL- it was a team that's "farmed" from for Minnesota) on Saturday and it was relatively calm!

I know that sometimes the fights do go on, as it's hard (and dangerous) for the refs to interfere. My husband played hockey for a long time and said they'd even have fights between kids that were allowed to continue.

I'm not watching the game you posted about, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was for show. I think people expect fights to happen during games, coupled with the fact that the season just started = reason for staged fights.

Hockey players will fight to get the crowd going again, usually then it's allowed to go on. It's entertainment value, but also when the crowd is cheering you on you will do better. So that's a common reason why fights are started and allowed.

Another reason they will let fights go is if it is a particularly chippy or feisty game and players are getting frustrated and angry. Letting the designated fighters on the team go at it can really release the tension before it becomes a bench clearing brawl. Sometimes it's the only way to get a game back on track. It also breaks the tension and helps prevent guys getting so frustrated that they take a cheap shot and injure someone

I think it's gross. As soon as they start fighting, my husband will change the channel. He's played hockey his whole life (still plays in an adult rec league), and thankfully has never seen any value behind the fights.

I agree though--I saw a couple nasty fights when he had sports center on this week.

Seems like every other sport has figured out how to deal with frustrations without all out brawls. You don't see punches thrown in soccer/football/basketball nearly like you do in hockey. And when they do, they're fined/suspended/etc.

I don't know - two 6'3", 250 pound guys wearing pads beating the tar out of each other doesn't make me want to jump between them.

I don't watch hockey anyway, but the fights don't turn me off. It's just part of the game. But then I'm probably jaded by my proximity to Philly when growing up. After all, we beat up Santa Claus

Like I said its largely entertainment value and to get the crowds going again.

To be honest I don't mind the fights. They're rarely really bad. I would much rather see a fight than see a frustrated dick of a player purposely check someone into one of the dividers on the boxes and fracture their spine...

Well that's every other sport. Hockey doesn't typically have guys pulling guns after a game either (cough NBA cough LOL)

Those sports are also a lot slower moving and a lot more stoppages. You get guys going 50mph on ice with BIG bodies to throw around and things can get out of control quickly.

It is what it is. I am not particularly a big fan of the endzone monkey dances after someone scores in football so I just don't watch it. I would rather watch two adults who decided to duke it out and just put it out there than some jackwagon grinding his junk around to stick it in the face of the other team. I think that is more disresPectful than two guys who choose to throw down

This!!!!

Argh I remember watching that game when that happened. Holy crow I was totally flabbergasted.

To allow that player to go on and play throughout the playoffs made my blood boil. But his daddy was a high up guy in the NHL surprise surprise. He had a lot of dirty hits that season.

Oh yeah I was livid. Still am. I have a very strong distaste for that guy and that team as a whole lol. He has been a dirty player since he was traded to that team. I actually liked him when he played for the sens (provided we are talking about the same event and the same guy LOL)

We are I think.

Upon review it wasn't his dad but I remember a connection between the high ups and the bruins.

They're not a team I enjoy for obvious reasons...

LOL for some reason this thread inspired me to go look up a good old canafian classic... THE CHAMP lol please tell me someone remembers what I am talking about

Oh yeah... We are both talking about Chara lol. I just don't understand how anyone could watch that replay and not see how he waited before he laid him out.

I think perhaps the only player I dislike more is Lucic lol

I kind of like the hockey fights-it's all part of the game, just like the touchdown dances in football, etc. Honestly, I wish they'd allow more fights in baseball-it would break up the boring.

I absolutely love it when the get a bench clearing brawl going in baseball. It looks bad, but I think it's hilarious, as long as no one is injured.

Did you see the wildcard playoff with the Braves vs the Cardinals? I seriously thought they were going to fight that game.

Pop up fly my a*s.

I love a good hockey fight. Miss Boogaard!

I don't think I've ever really seen it be commonplace for the refs to break it up. Most of the time they just let it go. It's part of the sport, I'd be sad if they started getting strict and not allowing them. The cool thing is, to me.... they beat each other up on the ice but it's not like these are mean violent guys, outside of the game they're harmless.

Fights are part of the sport, every team has a guy whose main purpose is fighting. I've never been a huge fan of the fights that appear planned to rev up the crowd, I prefer legitamate fights that break out after someone say, hits your goalie or hits you after the whistle.

Hockey is the only sport that I actually like to watch. I don't mind the fights. It's the only sport that I understand. There's lots of ediqute of when you can and cannot hit another player and you don't mess with the goalies. Maybe it's just the games I watch, but I don't see too many fights started without reason or allowed to go beyond whats necesary to sort it out.

Baseball isn't too bad, but it can drag on and on sometimes. I really dislike football, but will tolerate others watching it as long as I don't have to sit there and stare at the game the whole time. To me football is just a bunch of guys crashing into eachother to go a few feet and repeating for hours on end. I can't stand Basketball, I figure of both teams can get 100+ points in a game then it must not be that difficult of a sport.