Some Tuesday night hockey action

On Tuesday there were 5 hockey fights. In the Oilers-Bruins game, Jeremy Reich and Matt Greene had a go and Reich won that one decisively with Greene going down (either slipping or getting hit with a punch). In the Sharks-Blues game there were two fights. First the light/middle-weight bout between Ryane Clowe and Jamal Mayers. I gave that one a draw because neither guy seemed to land any punches. Then later Scott Parker and rookie D.J. King dropped the gloves off a faceoff and went at it. King got in some good shots on the veteran Parker and I would give the decision to King. Watch the Parker-King fight below.

Scott Parker vs D.J. King

In the Thrashers-Flames game there were two fights. The first one was Eric Boulton vs Eric Godard with Godard getting the win over Boulton. Boulton looked over-matched in this one. At the end of the fight Boulton had a bloody nose. Later on in that game Garnet Exelby fought new Flame Wayne Primeau. This was a draw.

Eric Boulton vs Eric Godard

Notta last night, Emery's slash on Lapierre

Nothing happened last night. My buddy Adam (of Adam's Hockey Site) added a YouTube video clip of the Ray Emery slash on Maxim Lapierre on his hockey forum. View the YouTube video below. You can also download the clip from Adam's Hockey Forum.

Ronald Petrovicky knocks out Kris Newbury

Not much happened yesterday, just one fight with Blue Jackets' Manny Malhotra and Blackhawks' Troy Brouwer. Brouwer gets the decision in that fight.

I haven't seen the Ronald Petrovicky knocking out Kris Newbury fight until now. All I can say is wow what a punch by Petrovicky, and I hope Newbury is ok and is able to come back. There is an update on Kris Newbury in an article on TSN. He seems to be doing better than what most of us thought.

Saturday was another good day for hockey fights

Another good Saturday with tons of hockey action. There were a total of 7 hockey fights last night. Most notably was the fight between Penguins' Ronald Petrovicky and Maple Leafs' Kris Newbury. Petrovicky sent Newbury down to the ice with a punch and Newbury hit his head on the ice. Newbury had to be carried off the ice on a stretcher. I don't know if he was out before hitting his head on the ice or not. I have not seen the fight yet but have heard from several people what happened.

In the Ducks-Stars game Shawn Thornton and Krys Barch went at it off a faceoff early in the game. They both traded punches but not much looked to land. I gave this one a draw. Watch the fight below.

In the Rangers-Capitals game Ryan Hollweg got his second fight in his second straight game as he took on Brian Sutherby because Sutherby bumped into the Rangers goalie. It was mostly Sutherby in this fight as he threw some good shots, but only one or two looked to land. Decision to Sutherby. Later in the game off a faceoff Colton Orr challenged Donald Brashear and they dropped the gloves. Orr started throwing rights as Brashear tries to tie up Orr. Brashear puts the bear hug move on as usual, then gets Orr of balance and throws lefts as Orr falls to the ice. This was also Orr's second fight in his second straight game. I would give this a slight edge to Brashear.

In the Senators-Canadiens game Chris Neil and Mike Komisarek had a short fight. Komisarek threw a punch and then Neil wrestled him to the ice and threw two punches on their way down. I give this fight a draw. In the Kings-Predators game Tom Kostopoulos and Sheldon Brookbank fought and exchanged some punches. I give that one a draw. Also in this game Derek Armstrong and Vernon Fiddler went at it. Not much of a fight as they went down fast. This one was also a draw.

Colton Orr provides punch for Rangers and more

Last night one of my favorite tough guys had a good game. New York Rangers' Colton Orr scored a goal, the first in his career and also got into a fight in the game against Tampa Bay Lightning' Andre Roy. Colton Orr won this fight and is now 2-0 against Roy in his career. When Orr was with the Boston Bruins he fought Roy, who was with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and literally broke his face. On Saturday I'm hoping for a Orr vs Brashear matchup.

Also in the Lightning-Rangers game there was a short uneventful fight with Ryan Craig and Ryan Hollweg going at it. I would give it a draw. In the Blackhawks-Oilers game Martin Lapointe and Zack Stortini got into a fight but they held each other close and traded noogie shots before Lapointe threw Stortini down to the ice. I would give that fight a draw.

Scott Walker throwing down

Yesterday there were only two hockey fights. In the Hurricanes-Bruins game, Scott Walker went after Andrew Alberts after Alberts tripped him and they were slugging it out for a little bit there. That was a good fight, which seemed to spark the Hurricanes as they scored 4 unanswered goals against the Bruins after that fight. I would give a slight edge to Walker. The other fight was in the Maple Leafs-Predators game, with Kris Newbury vs Sheldon Brookbank. I would give that fight a draw because neither guy looked to have an edge in that fight.

Scott Walker vs Andrew Alberts

Scott Parker and George Parros rumble again

Last night there were only two fights. Sharks' Scott Parker had a rematch with Ducks' George Parros, which turned out to be better than Tuesdays' fight they had. Still nothing looked to cleanly land but at least it lasted for longer than 10 seconds. I gave their fight a draw. The other fight that happened last night was between Canucks' Kevin Bieksa and Blackhawks' Karl Stewart. It was all Bieksa in that one as Bieksa had a good hold on him and Stewart looked to be tied up with his jersey. Bieksa threw some bombs that missed Stewart, if he would have caught him, Stewart would have went down. Bieksa I believe still has not lost a fight in the NHL in his career.

Woops excuse me, as I look at Kevin Bieksa's NHL fight card it looks like he has one loss and that came in the pre-season this year against the Ducks' Travis Moen. So Bieksa is 7-1-3 so far in his NHL career in fighting. That's pretty good.

Karl Stewart vs Kevin Bieksa

Look at everyone in the stands on their feet watching Stewart and Bieksa go at it. And there are some that say people don't like fighting in the NHL. Hello, look at the picture, everyone is standing and watching. No one goes to get a hot dog when a fight is going on.

9 fights on Tuesday, keep them coming!

Tuesday night had 9 fights and most of them were pretty good. First there was Bruins' Jeremy Reich in his second game with the Bruins, he got into a fight with the Capitals' Ben Clymer. Reich dominated that fight but nothing looked to cleanly land. Decision goes to Reich. In the Blue Jackets-Coyotes game there was some rough stuff with Nick Boynton and Jody Shelley trying to get at each other with a linesman between them. Then Zenon Konopka and Owen Nolan fought in a short spirited bout. Nolan went down, I think he slipped and didn't go down because of a punch from Konopka.

In the Hurricanes-Canadiens game Andrew Ladd and Craig Rivet had a pretty good scrap. Both guys threw some bombs, the better coming from Rivet. I would give the edge to Rivet in their fight. See a video of the fight below. In the Penguins-Predators game Darcy Hordichuk layed out Alain Nasreddine with a huge hit and Maxime Talbot skated right over to Hordichuk and they dropped the gloves and Talbot mostly hugged and held on for dear life. He must have remembered last season when Hordichuk beat his ass.

In the Kings-Lightning game, Raitis Ivanans and Andre Roy dropped the gloves and went at it. Roy got in an early shot and Ivanans came back late in the fight. I would give this one a draw. In the Canucks-Oilers game, Jeff Cowan and Zack Stortini dropped the gloves off a faceoff
and went at it. Not much of a fight with them in close. I call that one a draw. In the Blackhawks-Flames game, Dion Phaneuf hit a Blackhawks player and Brent Seabrook went over and challenged Phaneuf and they dropped the gloves. I would give the edge to Phaneuf.

The last two fights were Avalanche' Ian Laperriere vs Panthers' Steve Montador and Sharks' Scott Parker vs Ducks' George Parros. I didn't see the Laperriere vs Montador fight yet. The Parker vs Parros fight I would call a draw because not much happened as Parros lost his balance and went down quick. Parker did throw a late punch but I don't think it landed. Last night was a busy night for hockey fights. Hopefully more nights have a lot of fights like Tuesday night did.

Andrew Ladd vs Craig Rivet

Saturday night had fight fever

What a night last night was. There were 8 hockey fights in 14 games last night. Yesterday I wrote about maybe a heavyweight title bout against the Coyotes' Georges Laraque, but we didn't get it last night because the Minnesota Wild scratched Derek Boogaard, so we were robbed of seeing a Boogaard-Laraque fight. Word is that Boogaard either has the flu and that is why he was scratched, or he was scratched by Jacques Lemaire because Lemaire was upset with Boogaard who fought Laraque in their last meeting, which turned around the game.

We'll start off with the Edmonton Oilers-Colorado Avalanche game which had two fights. First Ian Laperriere layed out Ladislav Smid with a good check. Matt Greene didn't like it so he went right after Laperriere and they went at it. Not much of a fight though, it was all wrestling really. The second fight did not include Laperriere for the Avs, what a surprise right? Finally, somebody else on the Avs stood up and dropped the gloves besides Laperriere. Mark Rycroft bumped Oilers' goalie Dwayne Roloson and Ladislav Smid didn't like it, so they exchanged some shoves and nods and off came the gloves. Smid threw all the punches in this fight, nothing looked to cleanly land, but win to Smid in this fight.

In the Los Angeles Kings-Florida Panthers game there were also two fights. The first fight was between Tom Kostopoulos and Chris Gratton. I would give the decision to Gratton in their short bout as he dominated it. Then the guy everyone loves to hate, Sean Avery, got into a fight with Gregory Campbell. I would call that fight a draw.

In the Anaheim Ducks-Nashville Predators game there was action near the end of the game with two fights. First there was Sean O'Donnell and Scott Hartnell going at it in a short fight with O'Donnell mostly getting in shots. Then off to the side while O'Donnell and Hartnell are being broken up by a linesman, Travis Moen and Shea Weber decide to go. Half-way through their fight Weber gets the jersey over Moen's head and Moen throws a blind punch that lands right on Weber's chin that sends Weber down to the ice. Weber was stunned and needed help to get up and off the ice. Wow what a punch by Moen. You got to see that punch, view the video below.

In the Dallas Stars-St. Louis Blues game Krys Barch was back at it again. Barch layed out Ryan Johnson with a big check and Matt Walker came right over to him and away they went. It was a good fight but nothing looked to cleanly land on either player. I would give that fight a draw. Later in the game Barch layed out Blues' Captain Dallas Drake with a good check and Ryan Johnson went after Barch and they had a quick go. It was mostly Barch in that fight and decision to Barch, but good to see Johnson stand up for a teammate (the Bruins should watch that and take a note).

In the Vancouver Canucks-Calgary Flames game Jeff Cowan tried to get Eric Godard to go but Godard kept his gloves on as Cowan dropped them. At that same moment Alex Burrows and Byron Ritchie were getting into it. They dropped the gloves and had a spirited bout with Ritchie getting the upper hand. Decision to Ritchie in their fight. View the video of their fight below.

O'Donnell vs Hartnell and Moen vs Weber


Alex Burrows vs Byron Ritchie

Heavyweight title on the line tonight

The NHL heavyweight title could be on the line tonight when the Minnesota Wild and Phoenix Coyotes play later tonight. Most hockey fight fans know Georges Laraque holds the title right now and Derek Boogaard is probably #2 in the league and he'll get his chance tonight to take the title from Laraque. Hopefully they both are playing in the game tonight. These two have fought before 4 times and Laraque is 3-0-1 against Boogaard. Boogaard has suffered losses in two of his last three fights (against Laraque on 11/14 and against Godard 1/9). Godard showed us all that Boogaard is human just like every other fighter in the NHL. We'll see what happens tonight.

Two fights for Eric Godard

Friday night only had two games and we all knew that the Detroit Red Wings-St. Louis Blues game was not going to have any hockey fights. There were some small scrums in that game but nothing turned into a fight. The Columbus Blue Jackets-Calgary Flames game was what every true old-time hockey fan likes to see. There was hitting, passion, intensity, cheapshots, scrums, retaliation, and fighting. In the first period Eric Godard and Jody Shelley went at it after a scrum in front of the net after Zenon Konopka crashed into Mikka Kiprusoff. I would call that fight a draw even though I think Godard landed more.

Then in the second period Eric Godard instigated a fight with Zenon Konopka because a little earlier Konopka hit Jarome Iginla. The hit looked like Konopka hit Iginla's knee, and Iginla just came back from a knee injury and the Flames need their Captain. So Godard being a team player and knowing his role knew what he had to do. Godard got the win in his fight against Konopka.

Six fights in six different games

Thursday night had quite a few hockey fights which made me happy. There were six in total and they all happened in different games. First there was the Devils' David Hale and the Flyers' Ben Eager going at it with Eager getting the decision in that fight.

Then there was two surprise fighters going at it in the Bruins-Sabres game. The Bruins have been playing bad and haven't been showing any kind of team-play (sticking up for each other) and in this second game in a few days against the Buffalo Sabres, Bruins' fans were waiting to see what they would show tonight. They came out hitting and playing with intensity and in the second period a spirited bout took place. Bruins' Brad Boyes got into a fight with Sabres' Toni Lydman and Boyes bloodied Lydman pretty good. It was good to see some Bruin player stand up and beat the crap out of someone. See video below of this fight.

In the Predators-Coyotes game, Hordichuk and Laraque had a fast paced fight with both guys throwing wild punches. I gave the decision to Laraque in that fight. In the Lightning-Hurricanes game, Andre Roy and Tim Gleason dropped the gloves but not much happened in that fight. In the Canadiens-Penguins game Colby Armstrong absolutely decked Canadiens Captain Saku Koivu with a clean check and Sheldon Souray went right after him. Not much of a fight but good to see a player stand up for his Captain. Souray got the instigator and a game misconduct for that. View the video of the fight below.

The last fight of the night was between Sharks' Doug Murray and Stars' Krys Barch. This was a good spirited bout which started because Murray and Eric Lindros were roughing around before the fight and Murray challenged Lindros, but Barch flew right in at Murray and away they went.

Brad Boyes vs Toni Lydman


Sheldon Souray jumps Colby Armstrong

Four hockey fights on Tuesday

On Tuesday there were four hockey fights but none were toe-to-toe slugfests. Boston Bruins' Wayne Primeau fought Buffalo Sabres' Adam Mair because Mair hit Brad Stuart after Stuart layed out a Sabres player. Not that great of a fight between Primeau and Mair as both didn't really land anything.

The Philadelphia Flyers' Todd Fedoruk got into his first fight since coming back from getting his face messed up by Derek Boogaard in a fight. Fedoruk fought Tampa Bay Lightnings' Andre Roy but it wasn't much of a fight at all as Fedoruk turned away from Roy and went down to the ice. Will we ever see the Fedoruk of before his facial injury from Boogaard? I guess time will tell.

The Dallas Stars' Krys Barch must have had a lot of energy left over after being thrown out of the game against the Anaheim Ducks, because he got into an ok fight with San Jose Sharks' Ryane Clowe. I would give their fight a draw.

The other fight from Tuesday was between Toronto Maple Leafs' Alexei Ponikarovsky and Carolina Hurricanes' David Tanabe. I did not see this fight yet so I can't comment on who got the decision.

Gary Bettman has ruined hockey

The NHL (National Hockey League) has been ruined by Gary Bettman in so many ways. An article on Yahoo.com named "Unhappy anniversary" by Dan Wetzel talks about Bettman's upcoming anniversary and what has happened to the NHL during his tenure. Bettman has really ruined the true game of hockey and fans are leaving as fast as penalties are called during games.

Some parts of the article that stand out to me and are very true:

"Bettman is set to begin his 15th year as commissioner Thursday, and like most hockey fans I feel the need to mark the occasion by popping a bottle of champagne, chugging the entire thing in an effort to drown my misery and then smashing the empty bottle over my temple to black out the memories."

"There has never been a commissioner of a major North American sports league this inept, yet the league's board of governors keeps employing him, keeps giving him another chance to sink this once-proud, once-vibrant league to new depths."

"I could write a book about Bettman's insulting and imbecilic moves through the years (Chapter 9, "The Glowing Puck") but the main problem has always been the same. He has shown no respect for the game, for its history, for its fans, for its unique qualities."

"Bettman might consider himself an astute sports marketer, but in practice he is arguably the worst of all-time. He has never figured out how to change his marketing plans to fit the product of hockey. Instead he changed the product to fit his marketing plans."

"The league is now overexpanded and overpriced, misplaced and misdirected. It is less exciting, less interesting, less traditional and more difficult to follow for the non-obsessive fan."

"And, since fighting has been curbed, the "new" rivalries haven't really taken because a hockey rivalry without fighting is like non-alcoholic beer."

"This is Bettman's NHL. Fourteen years, four bankruptcies, three franchise moves, two lockouts, one lost season and no effective leadership. The business is so sick that the Pittsburgh Penguins, despite a loyal fan base and the most promising talent since Gretzky, are 50-50 to move to that noted hockey hotbed of Kansas City."

Stars vs Ducks had three hockey fights

Yesterday there were three fights and they were all in the Dallas Stars vs Anaheim Ducks game. Stars' rookie Krys Barch first got into a pretty good fight with Ducks' defenseman Shane O'Brien. At the end of the first period Steve Ott and Corey Perry got into a little pile up. While that was going on, Barch pulled Chris Pronger away from the pile to get a piece of him. Pronger looked like he didn't want to go, that's until Barch threw a short jab at Pronger. Pronger then got his right hand going, and he wrestled Barch down to the ice. The third fight happened late in the third period after Steve Ott gave a Ducks player a good hit against the boards, Joe DiPenta came over and challenged him. They dropped the gloves and it was all DiPenta. Good game, I wish more game were like this one.