by Bradley Clark

Created on: January 30, 2011

Violence between players has always been and should remain a league rather than a legal matter, not just in hockey but in all contact sports, as long as the violence takes place on the field of play.  Of course, I am not saying that a player should be able to stuff a gun in their pads and shoot another player mid-game without legal action, but hitting, punching and otherwise playing roughly, fighting and brawling are a part of hockey and of many other sports, and it is precisely the possibility of seeing this type of violence that brings many fans (and therefore money) to the various franchises.  Taking the incidental violence that occurs in hockey by accident, by a temporary lapse in judgment during a lightning quick game or as a result of the warrior like passion that is instilled in players from a young age out of league control in favor of the justice system would be detrimental to player relations and to the sport in general.

First things first, if players commit acts of violence “between the whistles” in hockey (or football, or rugby etc.) there should be pretty much no argument that it should be anything but a league matter.  Of course certain things are unacceptable, for example, if a player were to throw another player’s head towards the ice, then dropkick that players face with the blade of a skate, that would certainly be a criminal affair, simply because it is so far out of the purview of violence within the sport and because of the action’s especially lethal possibilities; the catch is that this has never happened, and probably never will.  Even in hockey, where fighting is more or less legal and even encouraged by some coaches (just look at Pittsburgh), there is still a mutual respect between players, even between players that hate each other.  There are cheap shots and then there is attempted murder, and the latter is something that simply does not happen and, in the event that it does, should be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

There are other, less extreme actions that some may think are deserving of legal action.  For example, if a player bashes another player on the head with his stick, should that player be taken to court because of his violent act?  Or, as has happened many times in the past, should he be given a five minute major penalty or a game misconduct, and maybe a fine or suspension, and have that be the end of it?  I would argue the latter every time.  First

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