>Does that mean we should accept whatever happens and label it "just part of
>the game", "just part of life" cause sport and life mean risk...period.
>Shouldn't we look into how the sport could be improved and make it a more
>exciting game to watch? The NHL has done numerous studies as to why scoring
>is down and penalties are up and how they can change the game to eliminate the
> trap.  Uncontrolled aggression that inflicts bodily harm and breaks the
>rules shouldn't be an acceptable form of play in any arena.
 
Just like there will always be penalties in football, and fouls in
basketball, there will also always be penalties in hockey. You can not
legislate or use the law to make everyone play within the confines of the
rules, that's what the penalty box is there for. If everyone played nice and
never hit anyone, then we wouldn't need the Sin Bin. But that is what it's
there for.
 
>>That these don't occur at a higher rate is a testament to the players and
>the >officials that participate in these sports.
>
>They are occurring at a higher rate. Statistics from a study by Dr. Kelley of
>Chicago's Rehabilitation Institute put hockey at the top of the list, above
>football for concussions and serious injury involving the spinal cord.
 
I think he was saying it's amazing that we don't get 2 or 3 concussions per
game, given all the contact and everything in the game.
 
>There is movement towards eliminating illegal play and violent behavior by
>players, the league and certainly the media. There is a growing number of
>hockey enthusiasts who don't go to either professional or college hockey
>games anymore because of "cheap tactics" illegal or injurious behavior.
>According to what I've heard and read, national coverage in the form of a
>major TV contract still eludes the NHL. The reason is hockey is considered by
>major networks as inappropriate viewing for children. I have also heard that
>the "game" (hockey) is not understood by the most people and is difficult to
>follow on TV. These reasons alone should cause the NHL to reassess how the
>game is played.
 
I would go for reason #2 over reason #1. Hockey is no less suitable for
children than football, soap operas, prime-time television, etc. There are
stories about the dogpiles for a fumble in football that makes a hockey
brawl sound like a schoolyard fight among pre-teens. And even baseball and
basketball have their ugly moments. Chan Ho Park doing his impersanation of
Bret the Hitman Hart with his dropkick, the numerous hard fouls and fights
in the drug-ridden NBA.
 
The truth of the matter is hockey is considered by the uninitiated to be a
Canadian Sport and has nothing on Football. But get those people to an
arena, and get them to learn about the sport, and you'll find their
attitudes will change. A vast majority of people know that hockey is much
better live than on TV, and TV knows that too. But until that changes, it'll
be the "4th sport" forever.
 
 
>< There is nothing that anyone can do to rid any sport of this, without
>having drastic <effect on how the sport is actually played.
>
>The GREATS of hockey like Lemieux and Gretsky DISAGREE with you; they've come
>out publicly condemning the sport for its violence, advocating changes in the
>game and player behavior. Violence is pervasive today on and off the ice. I
>actually feel that a large percentage of the population has become
>desensitized to it or complacent.
 
Maybe, but keep in mind there are many stars who are not as offensive minded
as the Great One or Super Mario who hit back and take as well as give the
big hits (Lindros comes to mind, but Messier, Howe, etc. all apply). I'm
sure Gretz and Lemieux would've loved the NHL to become a non-contact sport,
because then their numbers would've been out of the world, but then the NHL
would shoot itself in the foot, because the checking does add much to the
appeal of the game.
 
>Let's keep in mind that the playing field hasn't
>changed that much, but the way the game is played has. Also, there weren't
>200 plus pound players wheeling around at 40 miles plus per, or pucks
>traveling at speeds of over 100 miles an hour.
 
And before there were no helmets, minimal padding, no half or full shields,
etc.
 
>The NHL is looking to Europe to fill rosters; that's a change
>to rid itself of Canadian goon style. So, they are trying to improve the game
>and their image.
 
And yet the Canadian goon hockey produced higher scoring games than today's
more European style.
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      Ben Flickinger
E-Mail:    [log in to unmask]
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To all the CCHA teams, UNO welcomes you to the Bullpen. Now get ready to lose.
Everyone can have a bad century or two. Cubbies are gonna rule the 21st Century.
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QOTW: "That's so when I forget how to spell my name, I can still find my
#%@# clothes." (Stu Grimson, on why he keeps a photo of himself on his locker)
 
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