It is time for enforcers again!

[SnuggaRUDE]

Damn, is that all it took to set the league back 15 years?

15 years ago the league cracked down on penalties for a couple of seasons. What continued inaction, and game management, by DoPS incentives is going back to the 70s.

 

[MadLuke]

When did enforcers ever protect star players? They mostly just fought each other since no reputable player would drop the gloves with them. The rest of the time they were a huge waste of space in the lineup.

It was not just fighting part but actively injure other player during the play has well, there was a code if one of your player go after our star players, if you do not drop the glove to answer for it one of our enforcer will injure your team best player in a form of realization, a bit like when 2 country have an atomic bomb they do not engage in a direct active war with each other mentality.

But before the instigator rule, you didn't had to accept to drop to glove with them either, for example:

 

[Chokingdogs]

I agree but I don’t think it’ll happen. Dressing enforcers do more harm to the team than good. It’s not like every team has a Wilson in their lineup. What Wilson did was gross. I can’t help but think that if Wilson did that to a Canadian superstar like Crosby or McDavid, he’d be suspended.

Don? Is that you?

 

[MasterDecoy]

Enforcers aren't the answer.

It's having a DoPS with an actual clue and enough backbone.

the instigator has made enforcers useless.

if the league takes away team's abilities to defend themselves then the dops has to step up and take it's place

 

[Husqvarna]

Jani Hakanpää (Carolina) is givin' his do in the backline ... "Hakka pälle" is the ever Finland war-cry. When Finland went to war.

 

[CapsCrazyX17]

Sign matt martin or trade foe him. wilson is SCARED of him

HAHAHAHAHAHA, thanks for the laugh, pal

 

[Fig]

It was not just fighting part but actively injure other player during the play has well, there was a code if one of your player go after our star players, if you do not drop the glove to answer for it one of our enforcer will injure your team best player in a form of realization, a bit like when 2 country have an atomic bomb they do not engage in a direct active war with each other mentality.

But before the instigator rule, you didn't had to accept to drop to glove with them either, for example:

Brinkmanship is stupid. It's also useless if one of the two parties has no issues with nuking the other first (especially if one party calculates that the other party won't be able to retaliate after being nuked).

The suggestion for enforcers is kinda dumb. Modern problems require modern solutions. The modern way is to slash the shit out of the guy you dislike and aim to obliterate his wrists and fingers and then pretend it was an accident. (No I'm not being serious)

Injuring opposition players on purpose would get out of hand really fast.

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

Same people ...

Throw Wilson out of the league because he's a sociopathic meany mcmeanface.
-- and --
Bring back enforcers, because we need frontier-style retributive justice.

 

[SotasicA]

When did enforcers ever protect star players?

Clueless.

You can't see the times star players didn't get hurt. It's all about intimidation and communication. Often times an enforcer not having to fight is an indication he did his job well.

 

[MadLuke]

Brinkmanship is stupid. It's also useless if one of the two parties has no issues with nuking the other first (especially if one party calculates that the other party won't be able to retaliate after being nuked).

The suggestion for enforcers is kinda dumb. Modern problems require modern solutions. The modern way is to slash the shit out of the guy you dislike and aim to obliterate his wrists and fingers and then pretend it was an accident. (No I'm not being serious)

Injuring opposition players on purpose would get out of hand really fast.

Not sure about the stupid part (yet to have a ww3 after all), but yes you have that issues, but also having the type of people that would fight other goon or injure stars (often on coke or something else) brought a lot of issues, they would not wait for an incident to occur to injure opponent either, it is hard to have perfect control. There is a long list of a Domi crashing a Niedermayer that was not some retaliation because someone made a dirty hit to Sundin and so on.

 

[SotasicA]

I’m confused. Is there a rule against signing an enforcer?

Exactly. And plenty of teams do carry a tough guy. Sharks have Kurtis Gabriel, Flyers carry Sam Morin, the Isles Ross Johnston, the Knights have Reaves...

It's another option for the coach. The Rangers should get one for sure. Especially since they literally have nothing to lose. They already missed the playoffs. At least entertain the fans.

 

[Techcoockie]

HAHAHAHAHAHA, thanks for the laugh, pal

he will get cheap shot again, like every playoff, but this time he will not come back. That's what you want right ?

If a player like Jones head hunt this Goon there's a good reason.



Will he run into a line in the jungle ?

 

[Oilers 322]

Don? Is that you?

I don’t see how any part of my post is similar to Don mentality? I’m saying that IF this happened to Crosby or McDavid, there would’ve been more pressure on the DoPS to hand Wilson something more than a $5k fine.

 

[OilerTyler]

Clueless.

You can't see the times star players didn't get hurt. It's all about intimidation and communication. Often times an enforcer not having to fight is an indication he did his job well.

I’ll wait until someone can show me that star players are getting hurt more from cheap shots now than in the days of enforcers then.

I don’t believe it.

 

[HotPie]

Clueless.

You can't see the times star players didn't get hurt. It's all about intimidation and communication. Often times an enforcer not having to fight is an indication he did his job well.

Yes, enforcers are so "useful" that hockey was never as dirty as back when enforcers "mattered".

You're the one that seems to be clueless. I think it's time to take off your boomer glasses.

 

[InfinityIggy]

Lets start the bidding for 1 "Elite Enforcer" Milan Lucic at a 1st round pick with no retention. .

 

[Karl Eriksson]

Can deploy power forwards with an edge, like Wilson. No need for Boorgard style goons to send the message.

 

[StreetHawk]

Problem with his tweet is that only Probert had the skills to match the contributions that Wilson gives the Caps.

Guys like wilson are super rare. How many players are 6'3 or taller, and weigh 225 lbs or more and have the skating and hands to contribute. In his past 4 seasons, which includes this season, he has 152 points in 252 games. Basically producing at a 0.6 PPG pace. Over a full 82 game season taht is 48 points, good enough to be your 3rd/4th best offensive winger.

Ryan Reaves, over the same time period, in 267 games has 50 points, under 0.2 PPG. That is around 15 points a season over a full 82 games schedule.

And I think we have seen documentaries about the mental health impact on these former enforcers and the strain it took on them knowing that they were expected to fight another heavyweight.

 

[crazy8888]

There’s nothing stopping a team from having an enforcer today. Many times, they are slow and bad hockey players, so teams choose not to. I doubt many teams change that approach[/QUOTE]

You are correct. Not enough Tom Wilson's out there for every team.

 

[Canadienna]

John Scott just posted a video on his Twitter about how it's open season in the scrums in the NHL right now. Saying teams should just go all out against the other teams superstars as the worst you will get is a $5000 fine.

He's not really wrong, if the Rangers were a playoff team that would have been a pretty smart move by Wilson to take out their star. It may not be right, but if they won't discipline scrum infractions then what's stopping anyone?

 

[Over the volcano]

Enforcers were entertaining as hell but not effective on dealing with players like Wilson/Torres. If we wanted to eliminate cheap stick work and mid level guys taking liberties then there'd be a pretty good argument. But no enforcer will be able to convince a guy who's career and $ depends on disregarding players health that they should play the game straight. That's got to be up to the league.

 

[Over the volcano]

I rather have an enforcer on the bench for 1M cap, than a superstar at 8-10M injured

The thing is you could have both.

 

[kerrabria]

As one of the Gen Z, PMC, injury-conscious, skill-loving, tradition-hating, fans that old time hockey people despise...

I'm perfectly okay with big, bad, fight-happy guys in league--if they are actually good enough to crack an NHL top 12.

Enforcers in the mold of Trevor Gillies and Colton Orr are f***ing stupid.

Enforcers who can actually keep up and contribute to the play like Shawn Thornton, or can PK and dominate the face-off circle like Zenon Konopka, are cool, and it's be dope if they became commonplace.

 

[MadLuke]

I’ll wait until someone can show me that star players are getting hurt more from cheap shots now than in the days of enforcers then.

I don’t believe it.

That would be a bit of causation/correlation issue.

Sports and society in general are way less violent now than the recent past, i.e. it would be possible for stars player to have been injured more in the past even if enforcer did help (which would be really hard to know, comparing star players playing at the same time with an enforcer on their line versus those who did not had one could be a way to look at, but it would be a really small sample size)

There is a lot of theory around, but lead free gasoline and environment could be one (violence did rise has lead level went up and went down has they went down and the diminution of violence did match quite well geographically in that way)

 

[Slasher45]

Always say it, if you want guys like Wilson and Marchand to actually face retribution bring back fighting and enforcers. Does anyone take runs at the Vegas players? No, because Reaves would end them. Players police the game, exactly how it’s supposed to be.

That's BS. The Bruins have plenty of people that are willing to drop the gloves and people still take runs at them.