Violence in ice hockey

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Violence has long been a controversial part of ice hockey and the National Hockey League. Violence in ice hockey takes the form of either sanctioned actions – elbowing, roughing, or the hockey fight, which are seen as integral to the game and only place the offender for a few minutes in the penalty box, or more dangerous actions which might be penalized with suspensions or fines, such as kicking, hitting from behind, or stickwork.

The most controversial aspect is certainly the position of the game with respect to fighting between players. In North America, fighting is seen by many as a semi-legitimate part of the game. Some argue that fighting keeps the game cleaner because players have to be physically accountable for their actions, or face retribution from opposing players. Advocates of fighting state that the NHL's attempts to ban fighting (through various rule changes, notably the "instigator" penalty) are actually making the game more violent as players are less likely to be punished for stickwork and dirty play. Proponents of fighting will cite the fact that the vast majority of serious injuries in the NHL are not the result of a fight, but come from either incidental or deliberate contact during play.

Opponents of fighting point out that both European hockey and American college hockey, which harshly penalize fighting with suspensions, lack the incidents violence proponents claim to fear, and question what it is about ice hockey – unique to professional team sport – that requires a tolerance for violence.

Hockey, like other sports, has had exceptional incidents of violence which, on numerous occasions have escalated to dangerous levels. Some examples are players deliberately injuring their opponents, brawls, fan involvement, and physical abuse of officials.

On the ice, referees may impose penalties for expressly forbidden activities. Off the ice, the NHL sometimes fines, suspends, or expels players. The criminal justice system has also been known to investigate, charge, and convict players. Some critics consider it telling that the NHL is the only professional hockey league that has a major players award for sportsmanship, the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, which suggests to some a tacit admission of the need to encourage more civil play.

Billy Coutu was the first player banned from the NHL for life when, in 1927, he attacked referee Jerry Laflamme. In a Stanley Cup game between the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators, several players complained about the officiating. Bruin Billy Coutu hit referee Jerry Laflamme, supposedly at the request of Bruins coach Art Ross. NHL president Frank Calder, the League's first president, expelled Coutu from the NHL for life on March 29, 1929.

Other incidents include the December 12, 1933 event when Eddie Shore hit Toronto Maple Leafs player Ace Bailey from behind. Bailey never played hockey again. More recently, controversy and criminal charges have resulted from violent attacks by Marty McSorley and Todd Bertuzzi.

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[edit] Incidents Resulting in Charges

  • 1922 - Sprague Cleghorn injured three Ottawa Senators’ players in a brawl, leading Ottawa police to offer to arrest him.
  • 1955 - Maurice “Rocket” Richard of the Montreal Canadiens was hit on the head by Boston Bruins player Hal Laycoe. Richard retaliated by hitting Laycoe with his stick. When a referee attempted to stop the fight, Richard hit the linesman, too. The NHL suspended Richard for the rest of the season and playoffs. Canadiens fans rioted.
  • 1969 - In a pre-season game, Ted Green of the Boston Bruins and Wayne Maki of the St.Louis Blues were embroiled in a stick-swinging fight that resulted in a fractured skull for Green. Both were acquitted in court. The NHL suspended Maki for 30 days and handed a 13-day suspension to Green.
  • 1975 - Dan Maloney of the Detroit Red Wings attacked Brian Glennie of the Toronto Maple Leafs from behind. Maloney was charged with assault causing bodily harm, but was acquitted.
  • 1975 - Police charged Bruins player Dave Forbes with aggravated assault after a fight with Henry Boucha of the Minnesota North Stars. After a nine-day trial ended with a hung jury, charges against Forbes were dropped.
  • 1976 - Four Philadelphia Flyers players, Joe Watson, Mel Bridgman, Don Saleski and Bob "Hound" Kelly were charged with assault, using their hockey sticks as weapons in a violent playoff game between the Flyers and the Toronto Maple Leafs in which fans had been taunting the Flyers players and spitting at them. Bridgman was acquitted, but the other three Flyers were found guilty of simple assault.
  • 1977 - Dave "Tiger" Williams of the Toronto Maple Leafs hit Pittsburgh Penguin Dennis Owchar with his stick. He was charged with assault, but acquitted.
  • 1982 - Jimmy Mann of the Winnipeg Jets left the bench and hit Pittsburgh Penguin Paul Gardner, breaking Gardner's jaw in two places. Police charged Mann, who was fined $500 and given a suspended sentence in Winnipeg.
  • 1988 - Dino Ciccarelli hit Leafs defenceman Luke Richardson with his stick. Charged and convicted of assault, he was sentenced to one day in jail and fined $1,000.
  • 1998 - Jesse Boulerice of the Plymouth Whalers was suspended for the rest of the playoffs after violently swinging his stick at Guelph Storm forward Andrew Lang. Boulerice was charged with assault as a result of the incident.
  • 1998 - Jeff Kugel of the Windsor Spitfires was handed a 25-game suspension for attacking Juri Golicic of the Owen Sound Platers, as well as a lifetime ban from the Ontario Hockey League as a result of an incident that occurred a month earlier when Kugel sucker-punched Golicic from behind, then skated around the ice waving to the crowd. Following a lengthy appeal, the OHL commissioner softened his punishment, allowing Kugel to apply for reinstatement at the end of the season.
  • 2000 - Marty McSorley of the Boston Bruins hit Vancouver Canucks Donald Brashear in the head with his stick. McSorley was convicted of assault and given an 18-month conditional discharge.
  • 2004 - After repeated failed attempts at instigating a fight, Todd Bertuzzi of the Vancouver Canucks sucker-punched Steve Moore of the Colorado Avalanche from behind, knocking Moore unconscious. The pair then fell to the ice with Bertuzzi's weight crushing Moore face-first into ice. Moore sustained three fractured vertebrae, a grade three concussion, vertebral ligament damage, stretching of the brachial plexus nerves, and facial lacerations. Bertuzzi was charged by police, and given a conditional discharge after pleading guilty to assault causing bodily harm. His suspension resulted in a loss of $500,000 in pay and the Canucks were fined $250,000. Bertuzzi was re-instated in 2005, and Moore has made several (so far) unsuccessful attempts at civil litigation.

Sources:

  • A brief history of stick violence. CBC. 6 October 2000. Accessed at [1] on 19 July 2004.
  • History of criminal charges on ice. Canadian Press. 24 June 2004. Accessed at [2] on 19 July 2004.

[edit] Longest Suspensions

  • Billy Coutu, Boston Bruins, lifetime ban, 1927.
  • Dan Maloney, Detroit Red Wings, 2 years, November 1975. (banned from playing in Toronto only)
  • Marty McSorley, Boston Bruins, 23 games, February 2000.
  • Gordie Dwyer, Tampa Bay Lightning, 23 games, September 2000.
  • Dale Hunter, Washington Capitals, 21 games, May 1993.
  • Todd Bertuzzi, Vancouver Canucks, 20 games (also banned from playing internationally for 17 months, but reinstated by NHL commissioner on 8/8/05).
  • Tom Lysiak, Chicago Blackhawks, 20 games, October 1983.
  • Brad May, Phoenix Coyotes, 20 games, November 2000.
  • Eddie Shore, Boston Bruins, 16 games, December 1933.
  • Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens, 15 games, March 1955.
  • Wilf Paiement, Colorado Rockies, 15 games, October 1978.
  • Dave Brown, Philadelphia Flyers, 15 games, November 1987.
  • Tony Granato, Los Angeles Kings, 15 games, February 1994.
  • Wayne Maki, St. Louis Blues, 30 days, September 1969.
  • Ted Green, Boston Bruins, 13 games, September 1969.
  • Andre Roy, Tampa Bay Lightning, 13 games, April 2002.
  • Brantt Myhres, San Jose Sharks, 12 games, February 1999.
  • Matt Johnson, Los Angeles Kings, 12 games, November 1998.
  • Ron Hextall, Philadelphia Flyers, 12 games, May 1989.
  • David Shaw, New York Rangers, 12 games, October 1988.
  • Owen Nolan, San Jose Sharks, 11 games, February 2001.
  • Tie Domi, Toronto Maple Leafs, 11 games, Game 4 of the 2001 Eastern Conference semifinals.
  • Jimmy Mann, Winnipeg Jets, 10 games, January 1982.
  • Ruslan Salei, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, 10 games, October 1999.
  • Scott Niedermayer, New Jersey Devils, 10 games, March 2000.

Source: “NHL Suspension List.” Canadian Press. No date. Accessed at [3] on 19 July 2004.

[edit] Expulsions

  • Billy Coutu, Boston Bruins, 1927, for assaulting referee Jerry Laflamme.

[edit] Attacks on Officials

  • Billy Coutu, Boston Bruins, lifetime suspension, 1927, for attacking referee Jerry Laflamme and starting a Stanley Cup brawl.
  • Gordie Dwyer, Tampa Bay Lightning, 23 game suspension, 19 September 2000, after he abused officials and left the penalty box to fight in an exhibition game against the Washington Capitals.
  • Tom Lysiak, Chicago Blackhawks, 20 game suspension, October 1983, for intentionally tripping a linesman.
  • Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens, 15 game suspension (3 regular season, 12 playoff games), March 1955, for knocking down linesman Cliff Thompson during a fight with Boston's Hal Laycoe.
  • Andre Roy, Tampa Bay Lightning, 13 game suspension, April 2002, for leaving the penalty box and physically abusing an official while trying to start a fight with players in the New York Rangers penalty box.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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