Health & Fitness
Local Newspaper Brings Home the Violent Focus of Professional Hockey
What Does the Responsible Parent Tell Their Child Hockey Fan as Slugfests Occur on the Ice and Players are Bloodied?
The cover of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review sports section of Saturday, 4 May contains a large photograph of a member of the New York Islanders in the process of punching a Pittsburgh Penguins player, apparently in the face, as the Penguins member has a long trail of blood running down his cheek.
I would wonder how a sport whose focus is violence is held out as desirable for children to watch, the thugs of the game the idols of impressionable youth who seek to emulate their beloved athletes' "talent".
Can anyone deny that violence is encouraged by the league and relished by the fans? After all, the reaction of fans when a fight breaks out is not revulsion, but rather to become excited and to root for their guy to batter the opponent. If the league considered violence to be unacceptable, it would dispense penalties which would make it incumbent upon the players to avoid it. It does not dispense such sanctions as evidenced by the recurring nature of slugfests. One would think that the serious injury inflicted on Sidney Crosby, the darling of Penguins fans, would cause there to be second thoughts about allowing and encouraging fights, but that it obviously not the case.
Baseball is not a sport that is without faults or the occasional brawl, but before each game at PNC Park, prohibited fan conduct is noted, preceded by the ballpark announcer stating, "Baseball is a family game". Is hockey a "family game"? How so? What does a responsible parent tell their child when regular fights break out on the ice? Is the conduct endorsed, or does the parent say, "Cheer for your idol and wear his jersey, but hate his behavior"?
