Fighting in the NHL: A Different Take

By matt Jordan, Section NHL
Posted on Mon Mar 26 2007 at 2:58 AM EST
More on: Todd Bertuzzi, Chris Simon, NHL, Markus Naslund, Steve Moore, Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby (all tags)

Over the past couple of months, fighting in the NHL has been lambasted by so-called "sports experts". Most of this fodder is coming from people who have no interest in the sport. They have no interest, therefore, are ignorant to the history of the sport, and what role fighting plays in that vast history. True hockey fans know exactly why fighting is in the sport. It exists for many reasons. Maybe a skill player is getting too much physical play from a defenseman, or maybe that player has crossed the line with your skill player. Also, fighting can be the same as the two-out hit that sparks a rally.

(2 comments, 801 words in story) Full Story