The NHL and the rules of fighting

When watching a hockey game, many fans expect fights. But should fighting be banned? This topic has been brought to the league many times each year but no positive answer has been declared. Since the NHL has been around, fighting has been present. Many players have been remembered and famous for such acts. One of the most memorable fighters were a part of the Philadelphia Flyers, known as the Broad Street Bullies. This group was around in 1972-1978 and intimidated many players when out on the ice. One of the most memorable moments with this group was when they played the Red Army, a Russian hockey team which led to the Army skating off the ice because of how brutal they were during the game (click to watch) . When games like this start to brew, fighting in my opinion should be stopped. The question I bring is when is it too much?

Hockey fights help keep the fans entertained, and players more excited to play at times. It helps teams play harder, and more aggressively. Fighting also sells, believe it or not if hockey banned fighting fans would not attend as many games as often. Fighting is a major part of the game. As the NHL has become older in years, fighting has seemed to be controlled more. Especially during the playoffs because of how long a game can be lagged out. With the playoffs happening as I write this many of the fights that have been starting they have been controlled. I think that this is a good way to control fighting, but to not ban it completely in the NHL. Fighting in the NHL will always be around, and if it is stopped, I see the NHL losing fans and money quick. A good article to relate to mine is by John Buccigross from ESPN. His article is about fighting and is the best document I found on this topic. If further interested here is the link provided.

Buccigross' article

The Hockey News

When going onto a website for hockey NHL.com is usually the first choice among them all, yet there is another site which offers just as much information for hockey lovers called Thehockeynews.com. The hockey news is a hockey site not only covering the NHL, but also the hockey world throughout everywhere. They have many different stories on their site making it perfect for every fan to surf through when wanting current hockey updates. Placed on the sites toolbar, they have a blog section you can click on and read through their writers columns. One story which i thought was interesting was Justin Bourne's latest article entitled Why some NHL players struggle through the playoffs. With the Playoffs happening as this column is being typed, a story about playoff struggle is a interesting topic to talk about.

The article Bourne's wrote was put together well, keeping the reader's attention without losing interest while reading. The wording of the site was made for not just hockey fans, but normal language everyone can understand which is good for an everyday sports fan. Bourne's outlook on the player playoff struggle is not one-sided, and brings up many different points to look at when watching a playoff game with the players doing good/bad.

(Click to read)

A major part about this article i enjoyed was that Bourne is a former hockey player for the ECHL. When writing an article like this and being a former hockey player who has been in the playoffs, it brings past experience and more knowledge then most writers. The best way to experience something is first hand, which helps readers understand a story better in my opinion.

In conclusion, The Hockey News is a site providing up-to-date hockey information with updates on their sites at all times. The blogs are well written and the site is organized well and easy to navigate. I highly recommend this website for any hockey fan.

Countdown towards the playoff's

With high anticipation building up, the NHL playoff's is right around the corner. With only three games left in the regular season. A couple teams are in the fight to stay on top, and to make the last spot in the playoff tree. In the East, the Philadelphia Flyers in first place at the moment, if they lose tonight the Washington Capitals can land in first place playing the last seed team first round. The Carolina Hurricanes are only three points behind the Buffalo Sabres which could lead to Carolina hopping into the eighth seed spot. In the West, Calgary Flames are one point away from taking the former Stanley Cup champion's Chicago Blackhawk's eighth seed spot, and Dallas is not to far from taking Chicago's spot either with only three points behind. With the closing of the season happening this up coming week, the playoff teams have to make sure they stay in the spots they want to be in for the chance to be the 2011 Stanley Cup Champions.

Click Here for the playoff bracket as of today.