Hockey and Fighting: Perfect Combination, Especially When the Little Man Wins

Peanut butter and jelly.

Vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup.

Coach K and the Duke Blue Devils.

Certain things are just meant to go together, and the same rings true with the combination of hockey and fighting.

I’ll never forget the very first hockey game my little brother attended with me: it was an AHL game (around 2002) featuring the hometown Houston Aeros.

The main event wasn’t the score that night; the feature presentation was none other than one of the littlest guys on the ice: Cory Larose.

That night, Larose got in a major fight with an opposing player that was honestly twice his size; and Larose won the fight!

With that throw-down alone, my brother was hooked on hockey; and he will never forget that first hockey fight he witnessed as Larose took and threw punches like a pro.

The immediate response on the rink? Five minute major penalties for each player involved in the fight.

“You mean they get to come back out and play?”

My younger brother was shocked at the time; what a great sport!

I was up in the middle of the night earlier this week when our five-week-old baby got up for a feeding with my wife, and I happened to come across a sports program discussing fighting in hockey and how they thought it was hurting the sport.

These guys also sarcastically announced that hockey fights were just barely behind UFC.

You’ve got to be kidding me!

There really is no comparing Ultimate Fighting and hockey fights, but that’s just my opinion.

I think fighting in hockey is a perfect mixture.

Like rum and Coke, fighting is just part of the wonderful sport of hockey and it’s a great combo.

It’s time to turn on the radio; the Aeros are about to hit the ice for another Houston hockey game…

Denton Ramsey may be reached via email at [e-mail]