Do fans want fighting in hockey?
A majority of hockey fans oppose a fighting ban and think the on-ice scuffles are a significant part of the game at the pro level, according to a poll in the Toronto Star newspaper.
Fighting is an established tradition in North American ice hockey, with a long history that involves many levels of amateur and professional play and includes some notable individual fights.
| Season | Games | % of Games With Fights |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 460 | 16.74% |
| 2017-18 | 1271 | 17.86% |
| 2016-17 | 1230 | 24.88% |
| 2015-16 | 1230 | 23.41% |
That contact can be slight, but as long as there is intention with a certain consequence, it can be deemed an intentional tort. A player striking another player during a fight in a hockey game could be viewed as an intentional tort.
A sensational advancement in ice hockey in recent years is that the fighting graph is declining in NHL because people have disliked violence in a hockey game. This is the 21st century and audience even die-hard fans want to see an amazing, entertaining faster game rather than a fight on the ice in leagues.
Allowing fighting makes the sport safer overall by holding players accountable. Fighting draws fans and increases the game's entertainment value. Fighting is a hockey tradition that exists in the official rules and as an unwritten code among players.
Fighting has been a part of the NHL for 100 years, and is not penalized as it would be in other sports. It's against the rules, but not totally forbidden. Fighting has been an accepted part of professional hockey for a hundred years.
According to an extensive study done by ESPN called Sports Skills Difficulty, ice hockey ranks second behind only boxing among the 60 sports measured. Football is ranked third, basketball fourth, baseball ninth and soccer tenth.
Of the 2,842 NHL games in the period with a fight, there was a 66% increase in violent minor penalties committed in ensuing gameplay compared to games without a fight, rising from . 035 violent minor penalties per minute to . 058.
Football players aren't allowed to resort to fisticuffs at any point during a match, receiving huge punishments for doing so. On the other hand, NHL players involved in fighting only receive penalties, leading many sports fans to argue that hockey is the toughest sport out of the two.
Why is fighting allowed in hockey but no other sport?
Here's Why Fighting Is Allowed in Hockey:
“Fisticuffs” is an official part of hockey due to NHL Rule 46. Fighting allows the sport to “police itself” and may prevent injuries.
Fighting is considered to be part of the game in hockey. The unwritten rules actually provide pretty strict control over what looks to be uncontrolled. The refs always step in and end the fight when one of the players falls to the ice.
Hockey is one of the most dangerous sports as players are constantly fighting and pushing to get an advantage over the other team. While this aggression can be an exciting part of hockey, it has become a growing concern for many players, coaches, and fans.
The previous bully-off method, where two opposite players used their hockey sticks to compete for the ball, is no longer used to start matches. It is only used to re-start a match when time or play has been stopped for an injury or for any other reason when no penalty has been awarded.
Fighting also keeps players from hitting the star players who can't defend themselves, the same way a grinder or enforcer can. One argument has been made that there is no fighting in the playoffs, which means that the NHL should have no use for fighting.
In today's NHL, the most common reason for fighting is to stand up for a teammate. Hockey is a contact sport so it is impossible to react after every hit, but if it is believed a player has crossed the line between physical and dirty, then he will have to answer for it.
Many of the players that fight do practice it. Fighting used to be a bigger part of the game than it is now and people and players used to discuss who was the best fighter in the NHL. Now it's a lot less a part of the game which, speaking for myself only, I am happy about. But, yes, they do practice fighting.