What do we look for when we go see a hockey game? The scoring? The goaltending? The coaches making the play calls? While that all may be the truth, nothing is more pleasing to us fans and bloggers than to see some good ol' action on the ice. That action is fighting!
Unfortunately, what can you say about the recent brawls and fights that have popped up all across the league, mainly on the East Coast? The Penguins and Islanders brawled twice; once in Pittsburgh and once on Long Island. The Canadiens and Bruins brawled up in Boston that left 6 Bruins in the penalty box.
What is up with all the fights? What's going on around the league? What is the reaction?
Well, let me give you a little something I heard out of Penguins president and former superstar Mario Lemieux.
"Hockey is a tough, physical game, and it always should be. But what happened Friday night on Long Island wasn't hockey. It was a travesty," Lemieux said. "It was painful to watch the game I love turn into a sideshow like that."
Yes, Mario. That indeed was a travesty. Not only that but suspensions no doubt have come down hard. Islanders forward Trevor Gillies and Matt Martin got four games as well as the entire organization getting a $100,000 fine. Justice?
It's one of the many things happening around the league, not just with the Islanders. Perhaps teams are tired of seeing good teams trying to deke it out and the only way they can do that is to turn it into a brawl fight. Maybe it's the fact that their is some revenge over injured teammates, such as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin being out.
The Canadiens-Bruins game was not as much as interesting story, as the Penguins-Islanders games were. Although one thing I do have to say about that Bruins game is how can you fit six players in a small box like that? The NHL was ridiculous there, and maybe they're ridiculous with the Penguins-Islanders games.
The Islanders are the worst team in the NHL right now and because of that, they're having very little luck controlling players, who, I believe, are getting ripped by other teams. Hey, Long Island, you're not the only bad team out there. Edmonton's with you. But unfortunately, the Islanders' struggles became the source of a major travesty, as Mario Lemieux put it.
So what do we see up ahead? Will there be justice for the long run? Let's hope, because NHL discipliner Colin Campbell has got a lot of luggage to carry. So these fights might send a message to the entire NHL. There are consequences when stuff happens like what happened in the three games. There's no doubt that this kind of stuff will happen again. M
Maybe it will be up to the players to control what they're doing on the ice and not releasing it by acting aggressively and causing a lot of punching and pulling. Anyhow, the NHL might learn a thing or two because it is certainly has a lot of matters to settle.
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