Should Fighting Stay in the NHL?

With the NHL back after a great 2008-2009 season, a major topic still looms over the popularity of the National Hockey League; should fighting be banned?

During the 2008-2009 regular season, their were 805 fights for an average of .65 fights per game, which is up from the 731 fights and average of .59 fights per game average from the 2007-2008 season.

However, as the NHL continues to make its way back as one of the top four sports leagues in America after the 2004-2005 players strike that canceled that season, many fair-weathered fans have started to complain that the NHL shouldn't allow fighting.

MLB, the NFL and the NBA all take a strong stand against fighting with suspensions coming to the guilty parties involved, but in the NHL, a player gets five minutes for fighting before they reenter the game, and could fight another player.

Because of this, the NHL have found themselves in a very difficult position; do they limit or remove fighting from their game in order to get the casual sports fan to become bigger hockey fans, or do they remain loyal to their fan base that has always supported the NHL, and consider fighting to be a major part of the game.

With this in mind, here are some Pros (for keeping fighting) and Cons (to severely limit or eliminate fighting altogether).

Why to keep Fighting

Reason One: Players need to defend each other

In one of the most physical games in all of sports, hockey is a game in which players hit each other throughout the course of a game, and players are always quick to defend their teammates whenever something happens.

So if an opposing player comes up and has ice come up into the goalie's face mask while stopping, players on the goalie's team will come up and protect their goalie as an act of self-defense.

Reason Two: It makes the game more interesting

In a game, a fight could also be used to inspire a team to play better after conceding a goal, a big hit or any other event that caused a team to lose momentum.

After this happens, the team that caused the fight could start to play better and make an attempt to win the game, which makes the game more exciting.

Reason Three: The fans love it

NHL fans are among the most loyal fan bases in all of sports, and the biggest hockey fans always love fights.

These fans love their teams, and when a player on their team gets into a fight, they and their fellow fans go crazy, which always makes the game more intense.

After a fight ends, the fans continue to stay loud, and these fans know how important fighting is for their team's success.

Reason Four: It's an important part of the game

Throughout the history of hockey, fighting has always existed and is one of the most important factors of the game.

Every team from the beginning of the NHL have always had an enforcer, and hockey players have known to fight and protect their teammates from a young age. 

Because of this, a game of hockey must have fighting due to its history and actual impact on the game.

Reason Five: More violence will break out without it

I know you are probably doing a double take after reading this reason, but let me explain this.

The truth is, without fighting in hockey, violence is most likely going to break out due to the fact that there will be no players there to "police" the game and pick fights with the opposing team.

Without fighting, players will start to take more cheap shots on opposing players, which will cause even more violence and even more brawling, despite the fact that fighting is now illegal in the NHL.

Now that you have read the reasons why to keep fighting in the National Hockey League, here is a list of why to ban fighting from the NHL.

Why to ban Fighting

Reason One: Fighting isn't allowed in any other major sport

When fans go to see most sporting event, they usually go to see a big name or a big team play and in most of these games, fighting is not tolerated at all.

However in the NHL, fighting is allowed, which angers many of these fans in the way that these players do not get suspended for their actions, and in most cases, they are allowed back onto the ice after a five-minute fighting major.

Reason Two: It just lengthens the game for no real reason at all.

For some fans who go to an NHL game or watch a game on TV, they usually watch to see players such as Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin show what they could do on the ice.

However, these fans don't appreciate the fact that there is fighting in the game, despite the physicality involved, which causes some fans to dislike fighting.

Reason Three: By getting rid of fighting, you will gain more fans.

Since the 1990's, the NHL has moved more into the spotlight as a major sport in the United States, and they have been able to get more fans.

They moved franchises from places such as Winnipeg, Quebec, and Hartford for Phoenix, Denver, and Raleigh, N.C., in order to attract new NHL fans.

However, their image took a blow after the 2004-2005 players strike cancelled the entire season but since then, fair-weathered fans have started return their interest into the NHL.

But now, the league is facing pressure over their image from these potential fans: do they eliminate or severely limit fighting in order to get these fans into their league, which is a major reason why I am writing this article.

Reason Four: A player could get severally injured from a fight.

On Jan. 3, 2009, 23-year-old Don Sanderson of the Whitby Dulops, (a top senior amateur team) became the first known player to die due to injuries sustained during a fight.

On December 12, Sanderson was involved in a fight in which his helmet got knocked off before he fell to the ice, which caused him to get severe head injuries after his head fell to the ice.

After this happened, more resentment to fighting became more apparent in the media, and more people put pressure on the NHL to limit or ban fighting.

Because of the risks of players fighting on ice, there always is a great chance of injury from a fight, which will hurt hockey's image.

Reason Five: They don't have fighting in the Olympics or in the World Juniors Tournament.

Despite all of the fighting that exists, fighting still doesn't exist in the Olympics or in the World Junior Championships, and the game of hockey is still able to exist without any problems.

With the success of hockey without fighting in these competitions, people start to question why fighting is still part of hockey, as it shows that hockey could be played without fighting.

Finally, fighting is a major part of the game of hockey, and the debate over whether it should continue to be part of the game continue, but what do you the reader think: should fighting be banned and/or limited, or should fighting keep its current position in the game of hockey as a major part of the game?