Fighting is an oft discussed topic around the Australian Ice Hockey League and one which tends to bring out some pretty strong personalities. During a recent chat with a fellow hockey fan we were talking about the role that fighting has in this league, and more importantly, the value of import players who know how to drop the gloves.
Many Blue Tongues fans will remember the events of 2008, or maybe you’re trying to forget them. It was both a high and a low year for the Blue Tongues, which ended up being tainted by the on and off ice antics of a few import players. This isn’t about that team or those players, but they are key to this discussion.
Fighting has always played a big role in the sport of hockey. Whether it’s been used to change the flow of a game or send a message to the opposition, the sport has had both it’s heroes and villains in the area of fisticuffs. Rob Ray, Tie Domi, Bob Probert, the list goes on, these guys are thought of as gladiators of the ice.
And you know what… in the leagues they played in, they were. A fight in the NHL will get you 5 minutes in the penalty box. Sure there are rules about not fighting in the closing minutes of the game which is more severe but the fact is, a 5 minute major penalty is not nearly as bad as a 5 minute major and a 10 minute misconduct you’d get here.
The thing is, down here in Australia fighting is heavily frowned upon. We play by the IIHF rulebook (ie. international / Olympic rules) which clearly states the following:
528 – FISTICUFFS OR ROUGHING
a) A player who intentionally takes off his glove/s in a fight or altercation shall be
assessed a: Misconduct penalty (10’)
b) A player who starts fisticuffs shall be assessed a: Match penalty (MP)
c) A player who, having been struck, retaliates with a blow or attempted blow, shall
be assessed a: Minor penalty (2’)
d) Any player or goalkeeper who is the first to intervene in an altercation already in progress, shall be assessed in addition to any other penalties incurred in the incident a: Game Misconduct penalty (GM)
e) If a player, after he has been ordered by the Referee to stop, continues the
altercation, attempts to continue, or resists a Linesman in the discharge of his
duties, he shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Double Minor penalty (2’+2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM) or Match penalty (MP)
f) A player or team official who is on or off the ice and is involved in an
altercation or fisticuffs with a player or team official off the playing surface,
he shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Misconduct penalty (10’) or Game Misconduct penalty (GM) or Match penalty (MP)
g) If a player is deemed guilty of unnecessary roughness, he shall be assessed, at
the discretion of the Referee, a: Minor penalty (2’) or Double Minor penalty (2’+2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM)
h) A player who grabs or holds the face mask or helmet or pulls the hair of an opponent shall be assessed, at the discretion of the Referee, a: Minor penalty (2’) or Major penalty + Automatic Game Misconduct penalty (5’+GM)
Lots of rules just for dropping the gloves, and these are generally considered subjective depending on the type of fight and the reason for it. In fact a fight here in the AIHL is usually going to get you a 5 minute major, and any of the following:
- Misconduct (10min)
- Game Misconduct (20min + ejection)
- Match Penalty
- Instigator
In a game with 15 minute periods, a fight means you’re out for a third of the game… AT LEAST.
Goons Vs Enforcers
Due to the strict rules in the AIHL on this issue, one could offer up a fantastic reason why the limited and valuable import spots should not be wasted on players who could be considered “goons”.
A goon IMO is one of those guys who knows how to fight and likes to fight and tends to have lapses in self-control. Goons are often not team players, and will generally end up in the penalty box or out of the game because they can’t keep their emotions in check. This should not be confused with an enforcer, who can fight the same way, but know when and how it should be done for the betterment of the team.
This is where I want to bring up the difference between the 2008 and 2009 Blue Tongues. Last season we saw one of our import spots go to Bryan Lachance, a guy who averages low point numbers and high PIMs in almost every league he’s played in. This right here should have been a warning that he’s not going to work, but alas, out he came. In the 20 games he played with the Blue Tongues he managed to put up 33 points and 188 penalty minutes. For a top 2 import, he spent 10 minutes of every single game (average) in the penalty box. For Lachance, self-control was as foreign as damper rolls and kangaroo steaks. Gaetan Royer, although better, had much the same issues. Those who were around in 2008 know of the events, so no need to talk about them here.
The 2009 Blue Tongues is a different team. They have guys who can fight (Selander, Spillane, Howell, etc) but these guys know that playing hockey is a far better way to spend the game. They will drop the gloves, as is evident in the picture above, but they wont do it for the sake of fighting.
The Fans / Game Audience
The other major factor in fighting within the sport of hockey are the people sitting in the seats. As is the goal of the Blue Tongues, and most other teams here in Australia, we want non-hockey fans to start following the sport. Each game we see more and more people come to games who have never experienced ice hockey before. As fantastic as this is, it also means they don’t know the rules or the “game”. When it comes to fighting, the impact is both positive and negative. Last year we saw many people stop coming to games, especially those with children or families. In Australia, which is still considered a non-hockey market, we must ensure we appeal to the target audience, and that audience is not necessarily going to want to see guys punching each other.
The 2008 Tongues played hard, often dirty and penalised themselves out of playoff contention. The 2009 Tongues play fast, non-goon, end-to-end hockey while keeping a strong physical game and are second on the ladder.
Keep the gloves on, scoring goals, not punches, wins championships.
Season ticket holder and Blue Tongues fan since their inception to the AIHL in 2005. Mad hockey fan who has traveled to the other side of the world just to watch the Dallas Stars play live. 
Why can’t they just all be friends?
My view of fighting is that it has become a kabuki theater in the NHL and departed from the original intent of the ice hockey’s tolerance of fighting. In the old times fighting was less an effort to change momentum than to discourage a player from taking liberties (cheap shots) against that player or a team-mate. Unfortunately, in the 1970s as the number of teams and thinned the pool of players, some teams began using fighting not merely to discourage liberties but as a form of intimidation. It altered the game from a rough sport to a blood sport. In the NHL a rule against instigation was created that imposed a 2 minute minor and a 10 minute misconduct on any player deemed to have instigated the fight. This rule has altered fighting from a reaction to an objectionable act by an opponent into the modern theater we see today in the NHL.
To hear there are some players in a far off land who understand the true purpose of fighting in hockey is encouraging. Nevertheless, I think imposing so many sanctions on the players is insane. Especially in a league where the goons are almost as skilled as the skilled players, a game misconduct should be the max sanction along with a major and a minor, if one party is the clear instigator. A match penalty for sticking up for yourself or a team-mate? Why not just make all penalties double minors, maybe players will then stop slashing, cross checking, spearing, roughing and running goalies.