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Fighting is allowed in hockey because it needs to be. Hockey is a very aggressive sport and without fighting a lot worse things would happen. If you don't like to fight then just don't start with people and they'll have no reason to drop the gloves. And what do you mean you'll get your *** beat then fight them again? Maybe you're the hypocrite

Though I have absolutely no idea what you are saying I do agree that the NHL is hypocritical. The league complains about fighting and even goes so far as to make the rule adding 2 min to a 5 minute fighting penalty for removing your helmet before fighting then will turn around and use the same fight to promote the NHL or any one of its teams to fans. All the bullshit suspensions for head shots then use the same hits to sell itself to fans. Suspending guys for boarding and using a campaign like "Hungrier than ever" to sell itself to fans. It burns my ***. The NHL has sent the same message to fans through it's commercials since I was a kid, it's a big bad hit, big bad fight, big bad boy game. I went to my first NHL game at the Boston Garden in 1967 when I was 4 years old Leafs @ the Bruins and I've been a passionate fan ever since. It's a big boy game is the message that has kept me coming back all this time and I'm not afraid to say that. Might not be the popular opinion but, it's the truth. It's definitely part of the attraction and the league knows it. It's a disgrace the player safety bullshit going on without any change in the message. If the league were truly concerned for player safety they'd go back to the red line rule. I've watched the game evolve over the last 46 years and the **** going on now is not for the better.

I don't think it makes it hypocritical. Also, if you want to play you wouldn't have to put up with fighting. You have to be at a pretty high level for fighting to be part of the game.

I agree with you, the fighting part isn't necessary. I always laugh at the argument that there would be violent stick attacks if the league didn't allow fighting. Really? I mean, why would these guys need to hit each other with sticks if they can't fight? Do they all have that bad of anger management problems that they would need to resort to that? It makes no sense.

My guess is that there will be no fighting in the nhl in 10-15 years. Unfortunately I think it's going to take someone dying in a fight before it changes.

First off, the NHL is a league, not a sport. Second, how are they hypocritical? In most cases, a fight occurs because two players agree to drop the gloves. In most cases, when it's clear there's a winner or the players have worn themselves down, the linesmen will send the players off to their respective penalty boxes. I would like to think that Ray Emery's actions of Friday night are a rare thing; only a goon and a thug would force an unwilling opponent to fight.

If you want to play and don't want to play in a league with fighting, I'm sure there are plenty of amateur leagues that prohibit fighting. Find one of those. But if you intend on making it in the NHL or even AHL, guess what? Guys are going to fight.

Unfortunately thats whay separates the "big boys" nhl players from the rest is their physical demeanor amd ans their fighting abilities. I think fighting is a little like a flame catching a bush on fire; once a fight starts, the dynamic of the game changes and more fights will occur in all likelihood.

I played hockey for many years and I strayed away fron fighting which consequently made me known for constant hacking, slashing, and

Badgering.

Im still on the fence on this topic. Fighting should not banned but rather controlled more carefully and fights should he matched fairly.

Play hockey if you love it. Fighting is strictly forbidden in house leagues or any level you would be playing in, drop the gloves and take a swing and whoever does will be kicked out of the league and probably banned from the arena for a length of time. Fighting is tolerated at professional levels for a reason, it is NOT tolerated at any other level for obvious reasons such as lawsuits, insurance and plain old player safety. Most of the leagues you would look into probably are no check leagues as well, once you get to a better level then some forms of checking may be allowed but even then they keep it mild or you face some form of suspension/expulsion.

The NHL isn't hypocritical for allowing guys playing a very fast paced, physical and sometimes brutal game from defending themselves or self policing against dirty play. I would MUCH rather see guys fight than the dirty stick work or hits from behind that can do serious and potentially career threatening injuries. Fights very rarely result in any real injury (other than pride), hockey players suffer less serious injury than football players and closely shadow NBA players for injuries resulting in games lost...hardly as violent and dangerous as many people want to make it out to be. Baseball players lower shoulders to intentionally destroy catchers, they slide feet up with large metal cleats with full intention of spiking the 2nd baseman/SS and pitchers will try to hit guys with 90+ mph fastballs yet they are excused as it isn't "violent" (but all of those things are very violent in intent and result, guys have gotten careers ended by all of those things). Fighting produces a direct correlation to violence but look past the fists and see that other sports have less blatant forms of violence but just as dangerous if not more (as is the case in the NFL) than hockey. Ever been body slammed by a 6'10" basketball player who goes 250lbs or felt how wicked their elbows can be....they destroy knees and backs with amazing regularity while the guy punching might give the other guy a cut lip or black eye 95% of the time. Don't want physical violence to be part of a game you choose to play...there is always tennis, golf or poker (ESPN thinks it is a sport....maybe a papercut could be considered an injury though).

how does that make hockey hypocritical ... cause you find it violent??

Gary Bettman is a hypocrite ... because he pretends like he is against fighting ... but he creams himself every time a good fight happens and it gets air time on ESPN

I played hockey my whole life, still do ... and I have never been in a fight I didn't want to get in ... without fighting in the NHL you would see a lot more violent stick incidents ... if you don't understand that ... maybe hockey isn't for you

Disagree.