Hockey: Fighting It's Good for the Game

Hockey is a sport all on its own in many ways. It is a sport I would have loved to play if given the chance. It is such a minor sport in my hometown that not only did I not have an opportunity, but I didn't even have a chance to practice the most important part of hockey, SKATING. The reason why I would have loved to try hockey is the same reason it is being discussed in this article. It is a physical, rough and tough game. From smashing guys into the walls to being allowed to fight, this sport has its word cut out for it.

SMASH, CRASH and BLAST
If you ever watch a hockey game, plenty of contact occurs. They are covered all over in large, heavy padding to protect from all the different dangers. The most common contact that occurs is players smashing into each other against the wall when going for the puck. It is very common and a legal part of the game. This provides huge entertainment along with making the sport more elite to participate in. The other part of the game that many fans love.... the fights.

Fighting: Rules for it
It goes without question that a fight or two will occur at some point in a game. How does this happen without anyone stopping it? The rules allow that if two players get into a conflict where no other players interfere and the two involved players stay on their feet that it can be continued until settled. Many possible reasons remain as to why these rules are like this. For one, because of the padding and difficulty of fighting while standing on ice makes the punches generally much weaker. In general it is believed that these rules allow for fights without escalations or any extremely dangerous situations for the players.

Controversy
There are many who argue that fighting should not be allowed for several reasons. The dangers are too high, the violence is unnecessary for the game and it shows poor sportsmanship and player conduct. These are all reasons that fighting in hockey is continually looked at and questioned whether it should remain. The question in the end is will the game change if fighting was removed?

Why Fighting is Good:
Fighting is not just an act to gain fans and revenue for the sake of maximizing profits. Fighting has been around in hockey since the beginning. It allows for players to protect others. The biggest reason, in my opinion, that fighting is necessary is because of protecting the players. The best players in the league also pose the biggest threat to other teams. These players could be taken out in games constantly so the opposing team would increase their chances to win. Why does this not happen? Because the teammates of that star player protect him. The other team knows that in trying to take a shot on the star would invoke a spree of fights by every other player on the team against him. Since fighting is allowed, they would not hesitate to start one with him and needless to say he would be getting his you know what kicked for the entire game. This rule protects players more than people realize. Being an enemy to a team can be quite dangerous for himself and is always something players have to consider before taking a shot on someone.