RIP Chris Simon

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by bluejays

I'd like to see an in between of the best of both worlds. No ban on fighting BUT:

- limit the amount of fighting majors a team can have over the course of the 82 game schedule. Fine the team each time it goes over
- could do the same as above but limit the fighting majors to the player per season
- if fights happen, no head shots. Just body shots

With fighting as a whole, purist see it as a necessary part of the game for momentum. Occasional fans see it as an interesting differentiator from other sports.

Fighting is way down already. Is CTE going forward a huge concern? I'm not sure. But you can build better parameters around it so that the stupid premeditated fights are done. Those fights are so dumb. Fighting should be in the heat of the moment.

Between what I posted above and keeping helmets on, it really shouldn't be a big deal going forward, especially if you limit the amount of fights per season to 20 or something.

No offence, but that is one of the worst solutions to fighting in the NHL I’ve ever seen.

Not only are you accidentally enshrining it as a bigger part of the game than it already is by saying teams can have 20 fights, but you’re doing that plus turning it into an even bigger staged joke by putting rules around how players can fight.

Like, it’s so bad I think people NHLers and people who love fighting alike would just prefer it be banned altogether.

“Body shots only”? LOL

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

No offence, but that is one of the worst solutions to fighting in the NHL I’ve ever seen.

Not only are you accidentally enshrining it as a bigger part of the game than it already is by saying teams can have 20 fights, but you’re doing that plus turning it into an even bigger staged joke by putting rules around how players can fight.

Like, it’s so bad I think people NHLers and people who love fighting alike would just prefer it be banned altogether.

“Body shots only”? LOL

No different than hitting rules. Meh. Can’t satisfy them all.

[Samonadreau]

Originally Posted by TheIronMaiden

There are fewer fights in the NHL than ever before. The odd fight is going to happen, Christ there are fights in soccer from time to time. But by and large the culture has changed, it is a skill first league.




https://goinghockey.com/culture/figh...players-fight/

And then Matt Rempe enters the chat...

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by bluejays

No different than hitting rules. Meh. Can’t satisfy them all.

Except hitting/contact is actually allowed part of the game, so it makes sense to define exactly what is allowed. Fighting isn’t, so it’s entirely different.

[undercoverbrother]

There are some really odd takes in this thread.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by PuckSlap

I love hockey fights. The game is intense, emotions are strong. Men fight for survival, dominance, and personal gain, but they also fight just for fun.

Fighting is natural. Biologicaly we are wired to fight. But I can't stand those staged fights in the NHL.



Sent from my SM-S918W using Tapatalk

[The Yen Man]

Personally, I know I'm guilty of enjoying watching fighting, and was cheering on when TKO knocked out Bieksa. But looking back in hindsight, I now feel bad cheering on someone getting knocked out, knowing it's aftermath and CTE impacts.

Just like having players wear helmets, and eliminating headshots, I think it's time the NHL banned fighting for the sake of player safety. This should be something the NHL and NHLPA partnered up on. But I guess at the end of the day, money trumps well being, so I'm not confident it will happen anytime soon.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

And yet fighting is still allowed in the NHL as these guys continue to die and take their own lives
Shameful

Nothing more repulsive than going to a WHL game and seeing old men cheer to kids punching each other in the face.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

Nothing more repulsive than going to a WHL game and seeing old men cheer to kids punching each other in the face.

On that I 100% agree, still I understand why the players love fighting.

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Except hitting/contact is actually allowed part of the game, so it makes sense to define exactly what is allowed. Fighting isn’t, so it’s entirely different.

To be technical, it’s allowed to some degree in that it’s a penalty for exactly that. It’s about defining what’s allowed as part of a fight. Same way there are rules for hitting. We’re just saying all fighting continues to be a penalty but hitting to the head will be treated with a suspension. I don’t see it as that crazy.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by bluejays

To be technical, it’s allowed to some degree in that it’s a penalty for exactly that. It’s about defining what’s allowed as part of a fight. Same way there are rules for hitting. We’re just saying all fighting continues to be a penalty but hitting to the head will be treated with a suspension. I don’t see it as that crazy.

But the thing you’re not connecting with is that there is already nothing allowed in a fight.

Hitting: legal, unless you target the head, hit from behind, or board.

Fighting: not legal, period.

Adding conditions for what is “allowed” in an aspect of the game where none of it is allowed is going backwards. It’s absurd.

[flambers]

Only thing NHL & NHLPA could possibly do is implement an game misconduct for a fight, instead of an 5 minute major.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by flambers

Only thing NHL & NHLPA could possibly do is implement an game misconduct for a fight, instead of an 5 minute major.

I don't really think there is a crisis like there used to be. The NHL and NHLPA should focus on reducing over prescription of Opiates. I am not say that is related to the original topic of this thread, but players of that era were given disgusting amounts of access to live destroying prescriptions.

[flambers]

Even if fighting was eliminated; in my opinion concussion won't go away...

(i.e. players like Marc Savard, Paul Kariya etc.)

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by flambers

Even if fighting was eliminated; in my opinion concussion won't go away...

(i.e. players like Marc Savard, Paul Kariya etc.)

Of course you can't eliminate concussions. No one is saying any particular solution is perfect. You can lessen concussions and try not to encourage them.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

This is why I'm fine with Pospisil avoiding fighting. The kid needs to protect his long term well-being.

[TheIronMaiden]

If you really wanted to lesson concussions, they should make the seasons schedule shorter. 82 games is too many for a player.

[The Fonz]

I never thought I'd be at this point a few years ago, but I'd be totally fine if fighting was removed from hockey.

A way to phase it out could be:
1st fight - Game Misconduct
2nd fight - GM + 1 game suspension
3rd fight - GM + 2 game suspension
4th fight - GM + 4 game suspension
5th fight - GM + 8 game suspension

Tracking resets at the start of playoffs, and the start of each regular season. It'd naturally be eliminated to the point where even the "fighters" in the league would only actually scrap 1-3 times a year.


In junior & minor hockey, I no longer believe that it has any place or value whatsoever.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by flambers

Even if fighting was eliminated; in my opinion concussion won't go away...

(i.e. players like Marc Savard, Paul Kariya etc.)

Agreed but addressing fighting is very easy.
Evolving hitting is something that I think also needs to happen but is much more complicated.
But the league could choose, anytime, to get rid of fighting completely.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by The Fonz

I never thought I'd be at this point a few years ago, but I'd be totally fine if fighting was removed from hockey.

A way to phase it out could be:
1st fight - Game Misconduct
2nd fight - GM + 1 game suspension
3rd fight - GM + 2 game suspension
4th fight - GM + 4 game suspension
5th fight - GM + 8 game suspension

Tracking resets at the start of playoffs, and the start of each regular season. It'd naturally be eliminated to the point where even the "fighters" in the league would only actually scrap 1-3 times a year.


In junior & minor hockey, I no longer believe that it has any place or value whatsoever.

I agree with the following caveat:
- Fighting within the final 10 minutes of a game carries an automatic 1 game suspension.

The severity of a game misconduct reduces as a game goes on, so guys could just drop them late in the game, with the only consequence being a hotter shower for themselves.