Where do you see fighting/hitting in the future?

[cliffclaven]

I thought it was 2015 again. How times have changed, much for the worse. Thank you NHL.... they want players to be social media friends and just collecting a paycheck these days. Emotion and passion are very, very rare.

Correct.

 

[vandymeer13]

I am hoping they make a comeback and hockey has some passion in it again but I think the NHL finally has what it wants, a watered down PC game for the media and soccer mom's in Iowa. I don't watch nearly as much as I used to and find the current game boring and only getting worse, granted I am a Bruins fan and Sweeney has ruined this team.

Being from Iowa I resent that. Nobody at my work or any of my friends and family in Iowa watch hockey. When the hawks are in the finals you'll see people watch but that's about it. Everyone I talk to says it's like soccer on ice and they never see any fights when they watch on tv. And the roughriders use to be a hot ticket in town for the first three years when they fought a lot. Then for a couple of years they went with a skill lineup full of 5'8 160 lbs players and fans stopped going. They made a come back the year we won the cup but we also had toughness on that team. Since that year no one really goes except a bunch of kids who just run around with no supervision or people who go for two periods and then leave. My work stopped getting the two rows of tickets and not get 4 tickets because no one wants to go anymore.
To support my claim
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders yearly attendance at hockeydb.com

 

[Fenian24]

Being from Iowa I resent that. Nobody at my work or any of my friends and family in Iowa watch hockey. When the hawks are in the finals you'll see people watch but that's about it. Everyone I talk to says it's like soccer on ice and they never see any fights when they watch on tv. And the roughriders use to be a hot ticket in town for the first three years when they fought a lot. Then for a couple of years they went with a skill lineup full of 5'8 160 lbs players and fans stopped going. They made a come back the year we won the cup but we also had toughness on that team. Since that year no one really goes except a bunch of kids who just run around with no supervision or people who go for two periods and then leave. My work stopped getting the two rows of tickets and not get 4 tickets because no one wants to go anymore.
To support my claim
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders yearly attendance at hockeydb.com

Sorry I picked Iowa as a random mid west place that I dont look at as a traditional hockey market. Insert a state of your choice that likes boring, passionless Bettman hockey.

 

[cliffclaven]

Lol, the Iowa wild games are as boring and passionless as it gets. Buccaneers games are better, but they still boot kids for almost any checking.

 

[cliffclaven]

Saw one of the best tilts of the year today in the Milwaukee/wolves ahl game. This doesn’t show half of it, went on for about a minute, of just bombs. Sad thing is they each also got 2 for “unsportsmanlike” for removing their helmets.... that’s as sportsmanlike as it gets. That should get 2 less minutes.

 

[txpd]

emotion and passion can only be expressed thru fighting? Two words. Tom Wilson

 

[Sheppy]

emotion and passion can only be expressed thru fighting? Two words. Tom Wilson

No one said that, but it damn well helps.

 

[txpd]

No one said that, but it damn well helps.

I get that this is the fighting thread. That the decline in fighting is disappointing at best. It cant be a surprise. The increase of US NCAA players in the NHL decreases the number of players that fight in their development along with the European players. Then he required visor.

As a Caps fan I see plenty of passion. I saw a very emotional team in the playoffs and so far this season. They don't fight much.

 

[5150]

if its not their, NHL will die in the Canadian and American markets.

The hitting brought the game to another level

 

[vandymeer13]

I get that this is the fighting thread. That the decline in fighting is disappointing at best. It cant be a surprise. The increase of US NCAA players in the NHL decreases the number of players that fight in their development along with the European players. Then he required visor.

As a Caps fan I see plenty of passion. I saw a very emotional team in the playoffs and so far this season. They don't fight much.

The ahl going to ten fights really hurt. Along with the ohl and qjhl along with ushl all adding stupid antifighting rules.
My biggest pet peeve is when they say it's going away naturally. No it wasn't leagues started f***ing with the rule book. Bettman lies

 

[DaaaaB's]

if its not their, NHL will die in the Canadian and American markets.

The hitting brought the game to another level

The NHL will never die in Canadian markets. If you lived in Canada you'd know how crazy of a suggestion that is. Its popularity in America is increasing and has been for years. A lot of fans wish there was more fighting in hockey but most still watch it.

I blame the decline on Bettman but also the fact that society as a whole is a lot softer than it used to be. If kids even push each other at high school they get suspended or expelled. Punch a guy who's mouthing you at a bar and you likely end up getting charged.

 

[txpd]

The ahl going to ten fights really hurt. Along with the ohl and qjhl along with ushl all adding stupid antifighting rules.
My biggest pet peeve is when they say it's going away naturally. No it wasn't leagues started ****ing with the rule book. Bettman lies

I don't believe that. NCAA has never allowed fighting. The increase in American players is natural. Pro fighting posters have always said that as long as players want fighting in the game....Same players wanted the visor requirement.

I wont speak to the OHL rule because I cant remember specifics of why they changed that. Did someone die or something? The AHL was increasingly losing skill development players to their native European league. Players didn't want to play in the league because of how rough it was. Fact. The AHL to be successful has mirror the NHL game at a lower level as closely as it can to develop players. Its less and less able to do that. Besides, how many NHL players had 10 plus fights last season? Stats sheet says 3 had double digit major penalties.

It seems pretty natural to me. How many of these changes are a result of Gary Bettman anyway?

 

[Newsworthy]

The NHL will never die in Canadian markets. If you lived in Canada you'd know how crazy of a suggestion that is. Its popularity in America is increasing and has been for years. A lot of fans wish there was more fighting in hockey but most still watch it.

I blame the decline on Bettman but also the fact that society as a whole is a lot softer than it used to be. If kids even push each other at high school they get suspended or expelled. Punch a guy who's mouthing you at a bar and you likely end up getting charged.

Well Bettman is doing what's best for the league. The NFL lawsuits had to really shake things up. I wonder how many people saw the movie Concussion?

 

[Slats432]

Down to the grassroots, in Midget AAA in Alberta, almost every big hit is a penalty and anything that causes an injury is likely a major. Expect that it will be gone (mostly gone) from all levels of hockey in 10 years.

Bettman isn't the problem. The problem is lawsuits. Bettman is trying to ensure the financial well being of his owners. If players decided to class action sue over arthritis in broken fingers, all slashes would be a major. So when the NHL moves towards something it funnels down to the grass roots. Fans want physicality. Parents and players want to avoid injury, leagues want to make money. That is how the decisions are made.

 

[cliffclaven]

Hitting and fighting will be gone completely within 10 years.

 

[Big Phil]

Hitting and fighting will be gone completely within 10 years.

10 years is awfully soon. Someone mentioned that once the lawsuits are out of the way things might relax a bit, which would be a lot more fun. I hope that is the truth.

I don't believe that. NCAA has never allowed fighting. The increase in American players is natural. Pro fighting posters have always said that as long as players want fighting in the game....Same players wanted the visor requirement.

I wont speak to the OHL rule because I cant remember specifics of why they changed that. Did someone die or something? The AHL was increasingly losing skill development players to their native European league. Players didn't want to play in the league because of how rough it was. Fact. The AHL to be successful has mirror the NHL game at a lower level as closely as it can to develop players. Its less and less able to do that. Besides, how many NHL players had 10 plus fights last season? Stats sheet says 3 had double digit major penalties.

It seems pretty natural to me. How many of these changes are a result of Gary Bettman anyway?

The OHL did implement a rule of 3 fights per year. David Branch is a lot more responsible for the decline of fighting and the passion and excitement of the game than Bettman. Many players come out of the OHL, or the CHL in general and it has turned into a butter soft and watered down league. Very unemotional to watch and like watching paint dry.

This is what has led to a lot less fights. This didn't happen organically, this happened because there were people like Branch who wanted to shape our game of hockey into his own image. There may be more American and NCAA players today, but that doesn't make up for the loss of fighting we have seen in recent years. Europeans haven't risen in the NHL in the last 20 years, so that has nothing to do with the decrease of fighting either.

It reminds me of how politicians make everything as difficult and inconvenient as possible for people to drive their cars on the road. It isn't an accident. This is what the NHL and other leagues have done with fighting. They have made it difficult and undesirable for the players to do it. Almost uncomfortable. An open ice hit they may think twice about it because the media will talk about it until a suspension happens. These are all things that have taken the passion out of our game.

This is why so many of us long for the days when scoring was plentiful and passion was real. Players fought for a ton of different reasons. They were mad, they wanted to set the tone, they wanted to punish an opponent that took a run at a teammate, etc. No one questioned it, it had a natural flow to it and only the fringe fans complained about it. I doubt we can ever go back to those days, and it is a shame because no one seems to even be angry at each other anymore.

 

[txpd]

I have never equated fighting or lack of it with emotion or lack of it. You think Ovechkin is a robotic, unemotional player? He doesn't fight. Neither really does Crosby and he plays mean.

It used to be that there was one ref and that all the games weren't on tv and cameras didn't show everybody on the ice. Used to be you could get away with spearing a guy in the cup. Used to be that the league let plays grab and tackle opposing players. Those things created quite a bit of frustration and blow back. Do you really miss that shit?

 

[ted2019]

The league doesn't want hits or fighting. They want to have the players play flag hockey.

 

[cliffclaven]

The league doesn't want hits or fighting. They want to have the players play flag hockey.

Setting up for the “new” co-ed league.

 

[Big Phil]

The league doesn't want hits or fighting. They want to have the players play flag hockey.

This is correct. There wasn't a single fight on Saturday night last night. Just utterly passionless, at least in the regular season nowadays. Maybe the playoffs will help this year. There doesn't have to be an all-out brawl for us to see passion, but geez, try to act like you hate the other team. Travis Dermott got drilled the other day and not a single Maple Leaf stood up for him and he's out a month. William Nylander was on the ice, he practically shook the hand of the player who hit him.

Setting up for the “new” co-ed league.

No one in their right mind would watch a co-ed league. How do I know? Because no one watches the women's game today. The CWHL or NWHL (I think that is how it is worded) is sort of like the WNBA. If the NBA wouldn't be behind it it would tank. Look at the crowds with the WNBA, they can't draw flies. Why? Because no one wants to spend their time watching Lebron James or Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant for 6 months and then get excited about the WNBA. It just doesn't happen.

A female hockey player who had the opportunity at the all-star game to practice a few skill competition drills before the NHLers who aren't ever giving their all out effort at these things doesn't mean women will be in the NHL. It just means the NHL is trying to save face and say "See, we are good people, we like the women's game." They don't, and neither do the fans. The Hockey News for the first time this year dedicated a page or two to the women's leagues. That's it. Watch Sportscenter, even in Canada, I have never seen a single highlight of the CWHL. Why? No one cares. It isn't the NHL. Women's hockey is like watching paint dry at the Olympics, and these are the best players.

Don't worry, there will never be a co-ed NHL. These aren't 8 year olds playing t-ball in a co-ed league. These are the best players in the NHL. Do you honestly think there is a female in this world that is among the 700 best hockey players on the planet? No. Not a chance.

So while I have concerns about how the NHL handles rivalries and sucks the passion out of the game they aren't going to go THAT full blown soft to have a co-ed league.

 

[cliffclaven]

This is correct. There wasn't a single fight on Saturday night last night. Just utterly passionless, at least in the regular season nowadays. Maybe the playoffs will help this year. There doesn't have to be an all-out brawl for us to see passion, but geez, try to act like you hate the other team. Travis Dermott got drilled the other day and not a single Maple Leaf stood up for him and he's out a month. William Nylander was on the ice, he practically shook the hand of the player who hit him.



No one in their right mind would watch a co-ed league. How do I know? Because no one watches the women's game today. The CWHL or NWHL (I think that is how it is worded) is sort of like the WNBA. If the NBA wouldn't be behind it it would tank. Look at the crowds with the WNBA, they can't draw flies. Why? Because no one wants to spend their time watching Lebron James or Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant for 6 months and then get excited about the WNBA. It just doesn't happen.

A female hockey player who had the opportunity at the all-star game to practice a few skill competition drills before the NHLers who aren't ever giving their all out effort at these things doesn't mean women will be in the NHL. It just means the NHL is trying to save face and say "See, we are good people, we like the women's game." They don't, and neither do the fans. The Hockey News for the first time this year dedicated a page or two to the women's leagues. That's it. Watch Sportscenter, even in Canada, I have never seen a single highlight of the CWHL. Why? No one cares. It isn't the NHL. Women's hockey is like watching paint dry at the Olympics, and these are the best players.

Don't worry, there will never be a co-ed NHL. These aren't 8 year olds playing t-ball in a co-ed league. These are the best players in the NHL. Do you honestly think there is a female in this world that is among the 700 best hockey players on the planet? No. Not a chance.

So while I have concerns about how the NHL handles rivalries and sucks the passion out of the game they aren't going to go THAT full blown soft to have a co-ed league.

I agree. But anymore, anything that has any type of testosterone involved is offensive and “toxic” sorry man, when they outlaw hitting and fighting, which is soon... women will be in the league.

She might be the 2nd woman to earn a CFB scholarship

Probably never thought you’d see this.

In 10 years, the game will resemble women’s Olympic Games. Why wouldn’t Kendall be an asset? Faster than most players, and can’t be hit. [MOD]

Good luck, nhl.

 

[Slats432]

This is correct. There wasn't a single fight on Saturday night last night. Just utterly passionless, at least in the regular season nowadays. Maybe the playoffs will help this year. There doesn't have to be an all-out brawl for us to see passion, but geez, try to act like you hate the other team. Travis Dermott got drilled the other day and not a single Maple Leaf stood up for him and he's out a month. William Nylander was on the ice, he practically shook the hand of the player who hit him.



No one in their right mind would watch a co-ed league. How do I know? Because no one watches the women's game today. The CWHL or NWHL (I think that is how it is worded) is sort of like the WNBA. If the NBA wouldn't be behind it it would tank. Look at the crowds with the WNBA, they can't draw flies. Why? Because no one wants to spend their time watching Lebron James or Stephen Curry or Kevin Durant for 6 months and then get excited about the WNBA. It just doesn't happen.

A female hockey player who had the opportunity at the all-star game to practice a few skill competition drills before the NHLers who aren't ever giving their all out effort at these things doesn't mean women will be in the NHL. It just means the NHL is trying to save face and say "See, we are good people, we like the women's game." They don't, and neither do the fans. The Hockey News for the first time this year dedicated a page or two to the women's leagues. That's it. Watch Sportscenter, even in Canada, I have never seen a single highlight of the CWHL. Why? No one cares. It isn't the NHL. Women's hockey is like watching paint dry at the Olympics, and these are the best players.

Don't worry, there will never be a co-ed NHL. These aren't 8 year olds playing t-ball in a co-ed league. These are the best players in the NHL. Do you honestly think there is a female in this world that is among the 700 best hockey players on the planet? No. Not a chance.

So while I have concerns about how the NHL handles rivalries and sucks the passion out of the game they aren't going to go THAT full blown soft to have a co-ed league.

I don't think co-ed is the right word. I think a solitary female might crack a roster for a cup of coffee in the next 25 years.

 

[cliffclaven]

I don't think co-ed is the right word. I think a solitary female might crack a roster for a cup of coffee in the next 25 years.

10.

 

[timbermen]

they''ll try to eliminate fighting, then when they lose fans they'll double down on it again. Rinse and repeat.

 

[JETZZZ]

What if they allow refs to punch/get punched as well? A lot of potential fights are stopped too soon by refs getting in the way and grabbing onto fighters. Maybe once an official grabs a hold of someone they should be considered free game?