Fan of the Game? - Most of the time I agree with the editorials I read at OpinionJournal.com, but today I have found one that I really have to disagree with. Of course, the writer is entitled to his opinion, and here is mine.

As I watched the NHL on ABC this weekend there was a round table discussion by ESPN NHL commentators on Todd Bertuzzi’s despicable act, but also that of the not so informed “pundits” that have attacked the NHL for its “violence”, calling for the end of fighting and a switch to European style play. Apparently, Allen Barra is one of these people that are going to attack the NHL at a low point. I had not read or seen these attacks before Bill Clement of ESPN brought them to light, but here is my first, and I must admit I muttered a few rather unsavory things while reading Mr. Barra’s piece. Fighting has been a part of the game for years, and is an intregal part of the game. What Todd Bertuzzi did was a despicable, cowardly act, not a fight. A quote from the editorial:

”Mr. Campbell's job appears not to be discipline but spin-doctoring. Mr. Bertuzzi’s punch, Mr. Campbell took pains to explain, was not the result of a fight, as Mr. Moore was attacked from behind. One sees the distinction immediately; a fight is when two people (or, as if often the case in the NHL, more) face one another and begin, well, fighting. According to the league's unwritten code of behavior, then, it would have been OK for Mr. Bertuzzi to skate up to Mr. Moore, look him in the eye, and then break his neck."

“Look him in the eye, and then break his neck.” What kind of bozo statement is that? This is how it would have gone down if Betruzzi had not been such a coward. Bertuzzi would have skated up to Moore and confronted him face to face, Moore would have seen the punch coming, protected himself, and someone like Peter Worrell would have gone over, dropped the gloves and fought Bertuzzi, and then Bertuzzi would get the message that he can’t go around attacking players like Mr. Moore.

The next quote from Mr. Barra illustrates that he is just attacking the game when it is down.

“One needn't go to other sports for comparison. It isn't hockey that is excessively violent--it's North American hockey. NHL-style violence isn't condoned in Europe, where the game is just as rough but not half so dirty. Olympic hockey is almost alien to the kind of thuggery one sees regularly in the NHL, even though the same players are involved. The reason is that the Olympic committee simply doesn't permit it.”

Here I am going to defer to Barry Melrose, former NHL player, coach, and ESPN NHL analyst. This quote is from Barry Melrose, originally posted on ESPN.com and now via an article by Gary Baines at the DailyCamera.com:

"Others will be calling for an end to fighting and a move to European rules, but they likely don't watch a lot of overseas hockey," Melrose wrote on ESPN.com. "If they did, they'd see that the European game is the dirtiest in the world. Players over there engage in all kinds of stick work — slashing, spearing, high-sticking — and the physical play involves kicking and the like. There is no accountability or retribution, so a dirty player can run rampant all game long without having to face justice."

Allen Barra or Barry Melrose. I think I will side with Barry and the NHL.