Would you prefer to watch hockey without fighting?
A series of emails from 2011 between NHL executives have revealed a league struggling to figure out the future of fighting amid mounting concern over concussions and addictions.
They have also given new ammunition to critics who say fighting should be banned outright from the game.
Defenders of fighting say it's a form of self-policing and eliminating it would leave enforcers out of a job. But former NHL players are suing, saying the NHL knew, or ought to have known, about the link between repetitive head injuries and long-term brain damage but failed to protect or educate its players.
The number of fights has decreased over the years from a peak of more than 1,100 fights per season in the late '80s to 427 fights last season, even with about 400 more league games played.
Would you like to see fighting gone from the NHL? Here's how the conversation went:
(Please note that usernames are not necessarily the names of commenters. Some comments have been altered to correct spelling and to conform to CBC style. Click on the username to see the complete comment in the blog format.)
The vast majority of people participating the CBC Forum would rather see fighting out of the game
"Get it gone. I'm a full-time CFL fan and a now-and-then NFL fan, and a far more violent, contact-driven sport can be played by real athletes without hockey's childish behavior. Act like a goon in a playground and you're gone. Good. Grown men awkwardly dancing around on skates while ripping off each others sweater is not what I want to see at any sporting event." — David Winter
"If I saw a fight break out in the street in front of me, it would be exciting, tense, dramatic, and I would watch. That does not mean we should allow or encourage such behaviour in professional sports." — Longrunner.
"Honestly, I wouldn't miss it. There's a primal joy from watching two opponents spar, but I'd honestly rather watch boxing, tae kwon-do or HEMA for my fighting than have a game of hockey interrupted by it. The game of hockey has fundamentally changed in such a way that fighting is now utterly pointless. Keeping a guy on the roster who's not good enough to play real skill hockey, just to have a fighter, is a detriment to a team." — Matt
"The fights in the NHL destroyed the game for me here. I watch European hockey for its Olympic size rinks that encourage high-speed plays, passing and exciting games and no fights. NHL lost it for me long ago." — Jim Harrison
"I fully understand that tempers flare and fights will break out. It happens in most contact sports as well as car racing etc. It's going to happen and there are penalties for doing it. This being said, the days of the goon who only plays a couple of minutes a game is pretty much a thing of the past. i haven't seen a "staged fight" for quite a while. Personally I would much rather see the most skilled players on the ice than someone who's only reason for making the team is that he can fight." — tonyok
"I remember watching junior hockey as a child with my grandfather, an inductee into the NB Sports Hall of Fame. When a fight would start, we would go for a walk. He had no interest in watching it and felt it had no place in the game. I still feel the same, and with new knowledge surrounding traumatic brain injuries and the mental health issues surrounding them, it's time for the sport to move into the 21st century." — Josh Smith
One person pointed out that fighting in the NHL is already becoming more rare
"I don't think that it's necessary to ban fighting in the NHL as the recent trend in the league has been to build more of a skilled team anyways. Enforcers are being weeded out naturally as the game is evolving. Going forward, maybe the odd fight will take place, but that should always have a spot in the game." — Matt Caruso
But there were a few in the Forum who wanted to keep fighting in NHL hockey, for the entertainment, for the self-policing and for other reasons
"Nope. I love fighting, and the rarity that it is now makes it all the more special. I sure do miss old-time hockey with big pad stack saves, bigger hits, and bench brawls." — Peter
"What a lot of non-fans don't understand is the players on the ice need a way of policing the game on the ice themselves. Without it, there are too many borderline players that will get away with dirty hits, slashing, etc. and you'll see much worse that fighting when frustrations boil over without it." — off the post
"If you don't want fighting in the NHL, then go watch something else. It creates excitement and changes momentum not seen in other sports. Losing it will be a nail into the coffin called hockey." — Daniel z
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