I don’t exactly have a study to back this up, but I’m going to assume that 7/10 guys have gotten into a physical altercation in their lives. Whether it was “Meet me behind the bleachers after school!” or “Were you talking to my girlfriend at Utopia just now!?”, everyone goes through that feeling of anticipation when they are preparing to fight. You go into a deep, dark seclusion of anger. Maybe you think back to a moment in your life that really pissed you off, and you are going to channel it by punching someone’s face in. You pretty much decide to “Hulk Up” at that moment of impact. Sometimes you’ll have a few hours to get amped up while other times it happens in the blink of an eye.
Your adrenaline is pumping at an all-time high before and after your encounter. You pretty much become a madman for that time period. It’s road rage. Now, picture doing that 82 times a year. No, I’m not talking about 82 fights, I’m talking about getting into that state of mind. Yes, this is all leading up to the enforcer conversation that seems to be a hot topic right now. As an enforcer, you know exactly what your job is: Beat the crap out of the other guy when called upon. However, the called upon time is key. You can be in a state of aggression for that entire game without even doing much of anything.
From the moment the enforcer goes into that locker room to put on his hockey garments, he transforms into a gladiator. Frankly, I think you have to be pretty out there if you are going to be an enforcer. You have to channel every single particle of your emotion into one giant flame. However, the flame may have to sit there for over 60 minutes.
It’s a profession in which you have to be angry a lot of the time. When Thomas Vanek hits the ice, I’d bet that his mind is at a complete 180 from where Andrew Peters’ mind is.
You don’t know when you are going to be fighting, but I’d think as an enforcer, you have to carry an edge to your game whether you are sitting on the bench or playing five minutes a game. That can be a lot of anger to carry around.
Now, I only took one semester of psychology in college, but something tells me that a job like that, where you are constantly enraged, might lead to mental issues. Some people say that depression can be viewed as rage turned inwards which I actually took from that class.
I bring all this up because I think for fans/media to just point to head injuries or concussions as being the root of the recent deaths in hockey is a little short-sighted. I get that we have to take concussions very seriously. I think the NHL/NFL understands this and that’s why they are taking every precaution to make sure their players are healthy.
To me, the biggest problem with concussions in the past had to do with doctors, players and coaches not knowing what they really were or how best to deal with them. You always hear old-timers talk about how they would go into battle with broken ribs and body parts that were hanging by a thread. A headache? Please. Those guys would just go back into the game, and afterwards they would take an icepack or a frozen steak to their noggin. Now things are different. Everyone will take precautions. If you have a concussion, you will be sitting out. Period.
To me, there are a number of fans/media who are trying to use concussions way too much in talking about someone having problems. I think it may have to do with trying to get their point across because they may be in the anti-fighting crowd. It’s become the smoking gun when it comes to trying to dismiss fighting. Do we even know if any of these three enforcers had concussions during their careers? It’s not like this happened 30 years ago. Other than Probert, these guys were fighting not too long ago. Plus, for the last 10 years or so, the NHL has been cracking down on fights. Andrew Peters was the last Sabres enforcer and he played like 40 games a year. What is that? 5-6 fights a year?
How come we haven’t heard about players from the 70’s who have committed suicide or had mental issues? Last I checked, there were waaaaaaaaaay more fights happening during that era with the bench clearing brawls and Don Cherry’s rock em’, sock em’ hockey. We hear about NFL players from that era having difficulty because of head injuries, but not so much when it comes to hockey players. Now all of a sudden, we are going to make three hockey deaths into a concussion-related problem?
Another thing that should be noted is the actual fighting. Let’s be honest, NHL fighting isn’t like boxing or the UFC. You are not going to get 400 punches off. Plus, I think Mike Tyson’s punch is a tad bit harder than Rob Ray’s. To be honest, hockey fights tend to be a let-down. I’ve seen many fights where like 4-5 punches are exchanged, and the rest of the time is dedicated to the duo doing their best dance routine. Sure, we will see a donnybrook here and there, but those are few and far between.
I think we are approaching a time in which we are making concussions out to be something similar to blaming it on the parents when some one’s life takes a bad turn. Not to sound inappropriate, but should we call the Bills’ team doctors from the 70’s and ask if OJ Simpson had any concussions?Well, gee, if he did, maybe that’s why he allegedly killed his ex-wife. Maybe he went to jail for stealing sports memorabilia because he took a bunch of hits to the head. Of course, I doubt that because he was just a nut job.
Concussions or not, people have issues.
A 2003 article in the NY Times said that, according to the National Comorbidity Study, 16% of Americans (35 million) suffer from depression severe enough to warrant treatment at some time in their lives. I’m not sure if any of these 35-million had suffered from concussions, but if they did, it probably would have been mentioned.
Depression existed in society long before we started encountering head injuries. Prozac/Zoloft is a billion dollar business, and we know shrinks charge like 60-70 bucks a minute for their time. Maybe these three players were depressed before and after they retired. Again, if you are an enforcer you have to have a crazed mindset. Maybe they couldn’t turn it off after their playing days. Or maybe they were just a part of the 16%. I know some in the media said these guys were great people to speak to after the game, but that doesn’t mean buttkus. Athletes can hide anything when it comes to their personalities. Hell, the majority of the time they act like robots when they speak with reporters.
I know I’ve gone all over the place here, but while I agree that concussions are a serious matter in pro sports, I think we should be careful about assuming that they are affecting former players’ personal lives out of the box. I read that Matthew Barnaby has anger issues. Well, I probably could have told you that in 1995 when he lost his temper and beat the crap out of Garth Snow. I don’t think that had to do with concussions messing with his head, it was because Matt was an enforcer and probably an angry person when he got on the ice.
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Footnote:
I know a lot of people on Twitter are debating the merits of fighting. I don’t think I’ve ever really given an opinion about it before. As for the fights themselves, sure, I dig them. It can be entertaining if it’s a decent fight.
However, I’m sick and tired of hearing about The Code. I understand its importance from watching 20 versions of Robie and Rob Ray debating it on “The Whip”, but to me, it’s a little dated. When Tom Brady gets a cheap shot from a pass rusher, does the offensive line all of a sudden decide to drop the gloves? Does New England’s defensive line decide to take a cheap shot at the opposing QB? No. The opposition gets a 15-yard penalty and it pretty much ends there. Why can’t it be the same way in hockey? The reason why the NHL doesn’t get rid of it is because there are a number of old-school hockey fans who love it. It’s also been something that has been taught to players since they were probably teenagers.
Hockey is a unique sport because fans are so passionate about the rules and the traditions. How many new hockey fans are still confused by why fighting is important? I don’t think it’s because they are idiots, it’s because it doesn’t really make sense in the 21st century.
I assure you, if the NHL took out fighting and just gave the opposition a 10-minute penalty or suspended the hitter for 5 games, the problem would be solved. And don’t give me any of this “You didn’t play the game” crap. It’s nothing more than a time-honored tradition that can be easily changed. It’s not changed because old-school fans love the violence and the NHL doesn’t want to tick them off.
Bottom line: If they got rid of fighting, I’d be fine with it. It’s not like fighting has made hockey such a hot sport in cities that just started watching the game. I don’t think Carolina fans got into hockey in 2006 because of their enforcer, it was probably because they were good. At the end of the night, skill is more important and more fun to watch than anything else.
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