Same reason they are allowed to sell nerf bats for children. It looks violent, but in reality is essentially harmless. Two guys trying to keep steady on ice while grabbing onto each other’s jerseys have no leverage. They’re both wearing mouthguards and helmets and as soon as they fall to the ice where leverage IS possible the refs stop that shit immediately.
You ever see either of the 2 ‘combatants’ get examined by a medic, let alone rushed to the hospital, after a fight? No. They go right to the box for 5 minutes to cool down because all they did was tire each other out. Hockey players have to deal with far more violent events dozens of times a period in normal play.
Boxing and Pro Wrestling are far better targets for people against this. It is literally a sport about fighting. Ban martial arts competitions too while you’re at it. 2 guys flailing on ice to rile up their teammates is small fry.
In a game where your career, or your life, could be over in a matter of seconds over a single hit, the idea that you could get your teeth knocked out by someone for it is at least a slight deterrent.
When the fines amount to little more than pennies and suspensions rarely go beyond a handful of games, having to answer the bell for your actions can help keep a player honest.
And people may rarely get injured fighting, but try and tell me someone 6’ weighing 200lbs punching you full in the face isn’t going to hurt.
There isn’t really competing theories. The reason why its done is very well known, and others have stated it: fighting provides immediate consequences to players that break the moral code of the game.
Whether its a good thing or not is debatable, for sure though. I’d personally argue that if there was a better policy to achieve the same results, we would use it, and fighting actually has gone down as a result of high definition cameras recording more of the games. Players get away with less bad actions and there are less fights.
Even if they still have on their padding, it’s going to hurt getting punched in the face. Those gloves are heavy with thick leather on the outside (how it’s made
The one and only time I’ve been punched in the face was in full boxing protective gear just messing around, and that was enough for me to avoid any situation that might get me punched in the face for the last 20 years. But it was a hook to the temple in just the right spot.
Theres a documentary that will at least shed some light on the psychology of it for you called “Ice Guardians” its genuinely interesting.
But to put it very simply the refs cant see everything and its easy to make an attack thats outside of the rules look like an accident. If “A” team has a little guy who is exceptionally skilled the “B” team has literally no reason to not play dirty and attempt to injure him out of the game. Especially with the speeds the players are moving a “get him out of the game” hit could become a permanent life changing injury. So you put your enforcer on the ice and he will have a word “If you guys try and take him out again, I will punch the fuck out of the guy who does it in front of all these people, You have been warned” pretty simply, Hockey players police themselves and its unlikely that an on ice fight will lead to long term injury but the fans will see that beatdown and they know why. Keep it clean, keep it about the hockey or we can make it about the other thing.
Its a lot less prevalent than it used to be, which is probably a good thing. Its also a lot less necessary with all the modern high def cameras on a NHL game. But sometimes someone needs a message delivered in a very tactile fashion immediately not 6 weeks after the game after a tribunal has reviewed the footage and your lead goal scorer is still recovering from a severe concussion and may never play again.
Same reason they are allowed to sell nerf bats for children. It looks violent, but in reality is essentially harmless. Two guys trying to keep steady on ice while grabbing onto each other’s jerseys have no leverage. They’re both wearing mouthguards and helmets and as soon as they fall to the ice where leverage IS possible the refs stop that shit immediately.
You ever see either of the 2 ‘combatants’ get examined by a medic, let alone rushed to the hospital, after a fight? No. They go right to the box for 5 minutes to cool down because all they did was tire each other out. Hockey players have to deal with far more violent events dozens of times a period in normal play.
Boxing and Pro Wrestling are far better targets for people against this. It is literally a sport about fighting. Ban martial arts competitions too while you’re at it. 2 guys flailing on ice to rile up their teammates is small fry.
Even if it is so called “harmless”, that is still no reason why it should be allowed at all. So tell me why it is allowed?
It’s a way to keep other players honest.
In a game where your career, or your life, could be over in a matter of seconds over a single hit, the idea that you could get your teeth knocked out by someone for it is at least a slight deterrent.
When the fines amount to little more than pennies and suspensions rarely go beyond a handful of games, having to answer the bell for your actions can help keep a player honest.
And people may rarely get injured fighting, but try and tell me someone 6’ weighing 200lbs punching you full in the face isn’t going to hurt.
If it is harmless then how does it keep someone honest?
1 it isn’t completely harmless, but the chances of getting a lasting injury are vanishingly small
2 just because the chances of being injured are low, doesn’t mean getting punched in the face doesn’t hurt
3 in a (mostly) consequence free environment, getting punched in the face can be considered a reasonable punishment.
You said they did way more violent stuff during the game and all the fighting does is tire them out.
I feel like the reasoning of both “it’s harmless” and “it keeps people in line” don’t both work at the same time…
No I didn’t?
Sorry, mistook you for the person above. Anyway, seems like there’s two competing theories, in addition to it being just popular with the audience.
There isn’t really competing theories. The reason why its done is very well known, and others have stated it: fighting provides immediate consequences to players that break the moral code of the game.
Whether its a good thing or not is debatable, for sure though. I’d personally argue that if there was a better policy to achieve the same results, we would use it, and fighting actually has gone down as a result of high definition cameras recording more of the games. Players get away with less bad actions and there are less fights.
Even if they still have on their padding, it’s going to hurt getting punched in the face. Those gloves are heavy with thick leather on the outside (how it’s made
The one and only time I’ve been punched in the face was in full boxing protective gear just messing around, and that was enough for me to avoid any situation that might get me punched in the face for the last 20 years. But it was a hook to the temple in just the right spot.
They drop their gloves to show that they agree to the
rightfight, otherwise the refs break it up soonerTheres a documentary that will at least shed some light on the psychology of it for you called “Ice Guardians” its genuinely interesting.
But to put it very simply the refs cant see everything and its easy to make an attack thats outside of the rules look like an accident. If “A” team has a little guy who is exceptionally skilled the “B” team has literally no reason to not play dirty and attempt to injure him out of the game. Especially with the speeds the players are moving a “get him out of the game” hit could become a permanent life changing injury. So you put your enforcer on the ice and he will have a word “If you guys try and take him out again, I will punch the fuck out of the guy who does it in front of all these people, You have been warned” pretty simply, Hockey players police themselves and its unlikely that an on ice fight will lead to long term injury but the fans will see that beatdown and they know why. Keep it clean, keep it about the hockey or we can make it about the other thing.
Its a lot less prevalent than it used to be, which is probably a good thing. Its also a lot less necessary with all the modern high def cameras on a NHL game. But sometimes someone needs a message delivered in a very tactile fashion immediately not 6 weeks after the game after a tribunal has reviewed the footage and your lead goal scorer is still recovering from a severe concussion and may never play again.
Same reason nerf bats are allowed.