Pretty much…. I don’t like to see anyone get hurt. BUT, I also like the “violence inherent in the system”. So call me a hypocrite. Deliberate intent to injure? Call it. But a lot of what else happens, I’m ok with. For the record I think you could pretty much legislate violence completely out of hockey, if only the rule book were called like it is written. So obviously someone (I’m looking at you bettman NHL GMs and governors, regardless of what other people think) doesn’t care that much…

I’d like to know what a “pansy” is and who still uses terms like that. Is that the same thing as a “queer” or a “pussy?” Because frankly, where I live, the most athletic and fitness-oriented people are women and gay men. Suburban assholes trolling the streets of the Village or Chelsea looking for “fags” to beat on are going to get their asses kicked.

Also, I am so sick of the hypocritical defense of fighting that I could care less whether it stays in or not. Quit boring us by talking about it for no reason. If you’re going to leave it in, then leave it in, I’ll just take that time to go get my booze refilled or use the bathroom.

Frankly, why don’t we make it MANDATORY that every player get into 5 fights a year. We can get rid of all the “pansies” in the sport and have 30 teams that all play like this year’s Avalanche — can’t score goals 5-5, can’t play defense, really should just decline “power” plays, etc. Very entertaining hockey indeed!

One of the most poignant things I ever read about fighting in hockey was Georges LaRaque writing on his blog that he got good at fighting because early on he had to learn to defend himself because of the racism he faced. I wonder why Brashear is such a top enforcer. Yes, fighting represents all that is great about hockey.

"The way it all started for me is actually quite ironic considering the type of job I have today in the NHL. All through my youth I had to fight and defend myself because of racism, and now that I’m in the NHL, it’s kind of just natural for me. But don’t get me wrong — I would love to be a skilled guy, make $10 million a year and ask my team to get me a guy to defend me that makes 10 times less, but unfortunately I was not talented enough and will never be! lol!

I fight because it’s my job, not because I like it. How many fighters like fighting anyway? I’ve talked to many tough guys and I can’t even name you one. We do it because it’s our job; that’s it." – Georges LaRaque, 1/5/09

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/blogs/2009/01/05/laraque_last_word/

Laraque does go on to discuss how proud he is of having developed skills to have played in the playoffs regularly with his NHL teams. Perhaps if he hadn’t had to spend so much of his early years fighting, his skills development would be further along.

beating me up!

Yo everyone! Steve MacIntyre was misquoted in that Edmonton article. His real complaint was, and I think you and I can ALL get behind this one:

“There are so many pansies panties around these days.”

Let’s get rid of all them panties!!!

I’ve actually talked about fighting with a couple of guys at hockey and we’ve all come to pretty much the same conclusion. We don’t mind seeing a good fight if it’s after a dirty hit or standing up for teammates but when you have the neanderthal, one diminsional players like Parker, Larouque and Brashear who just drop the gloves a second after the puck is dropped and have a fight it’s just pointless and I don’t know many people who actually like that.
The funniest thing i read was Larouque defending fighting by saying that if they got rid of staged fights then the NHL would lose the one diminsional players, call me crazy but I would much rather have a league full of Ovechkins, Stastny’s and Millers than a league with neanderthals like Larougue and Brashear, no offence to them as I’m sure they’re great guys but I want to see the best representing the sport I love, and not a bunch of fighters making the casual fan look down on the NHL as a bunch of talentless thugs.
Also I fail to see how anyone who plays Ice Hockey can be considered a pansy.

they asked him about fighting (it was one of those Hockey newspapers that was at the ice rink). His view is that fighting is a necessary evil of the game, used to “police” the game. His belief is that without fighting, the dirty hits we see now will only escalate. Refs don’t always see everything, and without the players having their own accountability, I can see his point. He said that if that player who does the hit knows that he will have to be held accountable for it with a fight, it tends to lessen the impulse to maybe do it more often. That’s at least his take on it. I think there is some logic in that. I am okay with the ones where they are defending a player; the staged ones I hate.

I’m a bit ambivalent toward fighting. I don’t really like watching it but I can understand the point about self-enforcement – yet dangerous conduct happens in most other contact sports and the refs sometimes miss it, yet none of them have a policy that open encourages players to beat the crap out of each other as part of it.

The biggest argument for me – and the one I think really kills the debate – is that absolutely nobody, not one person, ever, anywhere, deserves to die doing their job.

And that is an undeniable risk with fighting in ice hockey.

And so, if they can’t make it completely safe, I’m not sure how they can justify it.

Canadians oppose hockey fights: poll
So, draw whatever conclusion you wish from the poll. I’m guilty of saying “everyone” in the title. Guess I should have said most, unless you are old, not a fan…or…wait for it…a pansy!
Gotta love the misleading (?) headline fron the paper.