NHL's 10 Most Hilarious Fighting Fails (Video)

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Not every player in the NHL knows how to fight, and when you see two players who have little experience in this part of the game square off, the result is often hilarious.

Instead of throwing punches, these guys often grab each other's jerseys and wrestle a little bit, among other things.

Let's look at 10 of the NHL's most hilarious fighting fails.

 

All quotes obtained first-hand unless otherwise noted.

Brad Marchand vs. P.K. Subban

In an exciting early-season battle last October, Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand and Montreal Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban got into a few confrontations before finally squaring off in the second period.

Fans were waiting for the two players to fight, and when the referees finally let it happen, it turned out to be one of the worst displays of fighting in recent memory. This bout had a lot more clutching and grabbing of each other's jerseys than actual punches being landed.

Subban talked about his bout with Marchand after the game, saying, "I’m not a very good fighter, so, I guess you could say I was going for the knockout, but it was a pretty bad attempt. So I don’t know, I’m probably better to keep my gloves on most of the time."

Alexander Semin vs. Marc Staal

Washington Capitals forward Alexander Semin decided to slap New York Rangers defenseman Marc Staal in an altercation during the 2008-09 season, and received a major penalty for fighting and a game misconduct as a result of the incident (h/t hockey-reference.com).

This is certainly one of the worst displays of fighting ever seen in an NHL game. Semin will have to live with this moment for the rest of his career.

Milan Lucic vs. Mike Komisarek

During the Bruins' 8-0 rout of the Toronto Maple Leafs at TD Garden in February, Mike Komisarek actually went after Boston heavyweight Milan Lucic and engaged in a fight and was absolutely destroyed.

Sticking up for your team is always going to be an acceptable part of hockey, but Komisarek's bout with Lucic just embarrassed the Leafs even more.

Brandon Dubinsky vs. David Clarkson

This has to be one of the most boring fights you will ever see.

Brandon Dubinsky and David Clarkson are two physical players who play the game with a lot of passion, so you would never guess that a fight between these two guys would be as dull as this one.

Thankfully, the Rangers and Devils had many other fights last season that were much more entertaining.

Tim Thomas vs. Carey Price

Tim Thomas is an elite NHL goaltender, but his fighting skills are not at the same level.

To be fair, fighting isn't something Thomas should be good at, and goalies in general aren't great fighters, but this "tussle" with Canadiens goalie Carey Price was a bit embarrassing for Thomas.

Troy Crowder vs. Jay Caufield

This fight between Troy Crowder and Jay Caufield included more hugging than actual fighting. After an interesting bout, Crowder finally finished it by wrestling the Penguins forward to the ice.

Randy Hillier vs. Torrie Robinson

While many New England hockey fans miss the old matchups between the Boston Bruins and Hartford Whalers, fights like this aren't missed at all.

After landing a few punches, Torrie Robertson and Randy Hillier engage in a wrestling match before both players take each other down to the ice.

Joe Paterson vs. Ed Kastelic

When the score is lopsided in the third period, fights are always a possibility since players on the losing team are likely very frustrated with the way the game is unfolding.

This kind of situation usually makes for a solid bout, but that certainly wasn't the case here.

Dion Phaneuf

Former Calgary Flames defenseman Dion Phaneuf wants to fight Jarkko Ruutu, but trips and falls to the ice before a fight can begin. Even if Ruutu did trip Phaneuf, it's still a funny moment.

Worst Fight Ever?

I'm not sure if this even qualifies as an NHL fight since both players looked more interested in staring at each other than actually throwing some punches.

This bout was an embarrassment to these two players, their teams and the sport of hockey as a whole.