Yzerman&Bowman favor fighting crack down

[shmenguin]

i saw shero speak out against fighting recently, which is...strange. i have a hard time believing that the guy who employed eric godard for multiple years would suddenly have this big change of heart on the matter. signing godard showed that he believed fighting had real value.

[Gaucho]

Not saying I approve or agree, but he could be in favor of banning fights, but at the same time acknowledges the reality and thus the need to hire a goon.

[shmenguin]

Not saying I approve or agree, but he could be in favor of banning fights, but at the same time acknowledges the reality and thus the need to hire a goon.

he's smart enough to know that goons haven't provided any actual protection for years now. i think he knew that players enjoyed the side show, and it provided some sort of boost to see one of their teammates make sacrifices like that. the need for goons is totally self-contained, so you can choose to hire them or not and you won't be taken advantage of by other teams. and he chose to perpetuate it. now i think he's just doing the media lip service thing.

[pittsoccer33]

If he's going to be one of the most vocal supporters of a ban on headshots how can he stand up for direct punches to the head?

[Idoit40fans]

Because they're unrelated. Its startling that you can't see that.

[mikey287]

Because they're unrelated. Its startling that you can't see that.

Seriously concerning, I agree.

[pittsoccer33]

what do you think a knock out is? they are the result of so much trauma to the brain stem that the body shuts down to try repairing itself.

[shmenguin]

they're totally unrelated, and shero knows this. but with that said, it's still a big reason he's opening his mouth right now. because enough people lump them together that he needs to do this ridiculous PR.

[Pitts]

Best part about soccer is that people assume its safer when its dangerous in different ways. Makes me laugh.

Being someone who has never played and knows almost nothing about it, what are the main dangers of soccer?

Lower body injuries are high (knee and ankle especially. Can't name one person I played with that didn't have at least 1 significant injury to either). But, head injuries are also high when competing for aerial balls. Plus, rumor has it that repeatedly heading soccer balls is not very good for the brain either. But, soccer is far more physical than its perceived and parents' that want their kids to play soccer because its "safer" is rather comical.

Soccer is very physical, especially at the high school level. My oldest son played for 10 years, all through HS. My younger son, it's all he plays - for 5 years now.

Elbows, shoulders, body checks, trips, etc. Can be just as bad as hockey, really, except it doesn't have a wall (except for playing indoor).

Now, indoor soccer, I've seen some nasty checks into the boards.

[Idoit40fans]

Going from hockey to indoor soccer is the easiest transition from one sport to another that i've done. So great.

[Rylan]

Exactly Pitts. Personally I found indoor soccer to be the most fun to play.

[mikey287]

Going from hockey to indoor soccer is the easiest transition from one sport to another that i've done. So great.

Heh, same. Not that I played indoor soccer at any notable level, but I found the transition to be strangely seamless...

[Rylan]

Indoor soccer has a pace to it that is pretty awesome. Add in the open space by having a limited amount of people on the court and it gets exciting for me.

[Idoit40fans]

Going from hockey to indoor soccer is the easiest transition from one sport to another that i've done. So great.

Heh, same. Not that I played indoor soccer at any notable level, but I found the transition to be strangely seamless...

I haven't played either at any meaningful level. The whole flow of play is basically the same though.

[shmenguin]

i lived for indoor soccer growing up. i was so much better at it than outdoor.

[pugilist13]

If Stevie Y really wanted fighting out of the game, he wouldn't employ BJ Crombeen amd PC Labrie. He certainly didn't mind it when Probert, Kocur and Cummins wore the winged wheel.

[DropEmJayBird]

I was kind of hoping this thread would go the other way, and we'd start talking about maybe adding fighting into soccer.

[shmenguin]

If Stevie Y really wanted fighting out of the game, he wouldn't employ BJ Crombeen amd PC Labrie.

yeah...all it takes is this simple point to discredit his entire stink. and if shero really cared at all, he'd be telling engelland to knock off the meaningless crap from the other night.

[Mongoose87]

If Stevie Y really wanted fighting out of the game, he wouldn't employ BJ Crombeen amd PC Labrie.

yeah...all it takes is this simple point to discredit his entire stink. and if shero really cared at all, he'd be telling engelland to knock off the meaningless crap from the other night.

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[penmyst]

It's time to simply get rid of hockey fighting altogether. At this point, it no longer serves a purpose other than sideshow.

Before the instigator ejection, fighting was necessary for team protection purpose. To police the other team so to speak.

I wouldn't miss it one bit. I don't watch them now. If it's not DVR'd so I can skip it, I use it as time to head to the bathroom or refrigerator.

As to the talk about preventing head injuries-- it's silly. You have large men moving at high rates of speed in these top-level professional sports. Injuries are bound to happen. Suffering the trauma of a car wreck repeatedly for thousands of times in a sporting career can't possibly be a good thing. But these are adults making adult decisions to accept the risk in exchange for the gargantuan paydays and fame. Their choice, not mine.