Does Fighting Have A Place In Hockey?

(Photo: bloguin.com)

This is a question that is asked day-in and day-out by everyone that knows anything about the game of hockey. People have really strong opinions, and I would not say that I’m any different. I also want to say, before I go on, that these opinions are mine and do not necessarily reflect the rest of The Pink Puck.

So does fighting still have a place in professional hockey? In my opinion, yes.

I don’t want to try and say every fight that happens in a given season can be justified, because sometimes players get carried away. But fighting has been part of the game for a long time and sometimes things just happen. It has to be easy to get caught up in the flow of the game when your adrenaline is flowing. Hockey is undeniably an emotional game. It’s fast and it’s physical.

Some players have described it as a way for players to police themselves for what happens on the ice. This ability is part of what has made hockey the game that it is today. It lets players react more naturally.

That is not to say that staged fighting necessarily still belongs in professional hockey. I don’t want to say players should feel like they have to fight or they won’t be able to fit into the game. Every player has a role and the guys that are willing to fight often serve a role that gets overlooked. Those guys that are willing to drop the gloves are also the guys providing the energy. They’re the ones always finishing their hits. They’re the ones making the other team afraid to take liberties.

I’m strongly opposed to fighting being removed from the game all together, but that does not mean that I don’t understand a need for regulation. There are definitely situations where it needs to be part of the game. At the same time, you don’t want players getting too carried away because that is when injuries happen.

The debate over fighting is a strong one. But, I think there are bigger problems in professional hockey that need to be addressed before we stress out about a fight that breaks out.What are those bigger problems? Illegal hits.

Hockey leagues across the board have been working to remove these dangerous hits and dangerous plays from the game. While they’re doing a good job, the job isn’t done yet. Players are still getting suspended and still need to be monitored for the protection of other players around the league. That begs the question: would this get worse without the fear of one teammate standing up for another?

It’s hard to tell. If you take fighting out of hockey, there might be no change in the cheap shots taken by other players without the fear of retaliation. Or it could make players more likely to play fast and loose with the rules.

Looking beyond the NHL to other leagues like the AHL and ECHL, fighting plays an even bigger role. You see much higher totals for the number of fighting majors handed out in a season. There usually seems to be a reason for this.

The minor leagues are a place for players to develop skills while hoping to make it to the NHL. These players are looking to get noticed, one way or another. For better or worse, showing that you are willing to stick up for your teammates has become one way to do that. This is not saying you’re going into the game planning to get into a fight. One player in the league talked out in terms of playing a physical game. The players are going in and showing that they can finish their hits to play a tough, physical game. Sometimes part of finishing your hits is defending that against a player from another team that takes exception.

Some people try to say that there are also a lot of staged fights in the AHL. While there might be more fights that are staged, there are also different relationships between the teams in the AHL and ECHL than there are between teams in the NHL. In these leagues, it’s not unusual for teams to get into the double digits with the times they face off against opponents. In the NHL, with teams playing more inter-conference games, you don’t play teams as often.

When you’re seeing another team that often, tensions build throughout the season. Bad feelings carry over from one game to the next. Players also get used to the way other teams play and feel more comfortable taking liberties. Fights become an even more important way for players to police themselves during the game.

The idea of fighting in hockey would not seem to be a black and white debate. To me, I can’t justify saying it should be taken out all together. But I also can’t say that it belongs in the sport without any sort of regulation. Have an opinion of your own? Don’t be afraid to share it in the comments of this article or with me on twitter (@jessicahigham).