Ice Hockey Fights

HОCКЕУ FIGHIING BY THE NUMBERS ALTERCATIONS Hockey is arguably the world's fastest and most physical sport. With that comes extreme intensity, which can lead to fighting altercations on the ice. The National Hockey League has existed for some 87 years, and fighting has been a key aspect since before the league's inception. • A common saying from a non-fan is: "I went to a fight, and a hockey game broke out." But, believe it or not, fighting is a key part of the game. Coincidence? We think not. There is actually quite a bit of strategy involved in when a fight will occur. Just take a look at the score of a game: If it's a If it's a game, don't expect a fight. game, well, get ready! Below is a closer look and statistical analysis as to how often fighting occurs. A DECADE OF Hockey Brawls THERE ARE 1230= games every year in the NHL. Below is the total amount of fighting incidences in the last 10 seasons. 684 803 2000-2001 668 2001-2002 2002-2003 789 Lockout 2003-2004 497 2004-2005 664 2005-2006 734 2006-2007 714 2007-2008 635 2008-2009 2009-2010 Each season, more than 329% altercations. 327 of NHL games included NHL players got into fighting altercations. PUNCH, Pass, Score A Gordie Howe Hat Trick is a variation on the hat trick where a player scores a goal, records an assist on a goal, and fights all in one game. Howe recorded two Gordie Howe Hat Tricks, both in the 1953-1954 season. •Brendan Shanahan is the Gordie Howe Hat Trick leader, with 17 recorded efforts. WHO FIGHTS THE MOST There are 30 NHL teams, but some have a tendency to play more of a physical game, often resulting in more fighting altercations. Below is a look at which teams fought most during the 2010-2011 season. 78 St. Louis Blues Boston Bruins 71 Pittsburgh Penguins 68 New York Islanders Anaheim Ducks 62 New York Rangers 55 Edmonton Oilers 54 Columbus Blue Jackets 51 Dallas Stars 50 Toronto Maple Leafs Each team is known to have one or two fighters, otherwise known as the team's "heavyweights." Here is a glance at which players fought most during the 2010-2011 season. PLAYER FIGHTS 27 1. George Parros - Anaheim Ducks 2. Zenon Konopka - NY Islanders 3. Jared Boll - Columbus Blue Jackets 18 18 4. Kyle Clifford – LA Kings 5. Brandon Prust - NY Rangers 17 6. B.J. Crombeen - St. Louis Blues 7. Derek Dorsett - Columbus Blue Jackets 8. Cam Janssen - New Jersey Devils 9. Cody McCormic - Buffalo Sabres 10. Brad Staubitz - San Jose Sharks 11. Kevin Westgarth - Los Angeles Kings 14 12. Matt Hendricks - Washington Capitals 13. Cody McLeod - Colorado Avalanche 14. Shawn Thornton - Boston Bruins 15. Paul Bissonnette - Phoenix Coyotes 14 13 16. Daniel Carcillo - Phoenix Coyotes 17. David Clarkson - New Jersey Devils 18. Deryk Engelland - Pittsburgh Penguins 19. Matt Martin - New York Islanders 20. Colton Or - Toronto Maple Leafs 21. Sean Avery - New York Rangers 22. Krys Barch - Dallas Stars 23. Matt Carkner - Ottawa Senators | 12 24. Ryane Clowe - San Jose Sharks | 1 25. Tim Jackman - Calgary Flames | 1 26. Jamal Mayers - Chicago Blackhawks 27. Adam McQuaid - Boston Bruins 12 28. Chris Neil - Ottawa Senators 1. 29. Michael Rupp - Pittsburgh Penguins | 12 30. Jody Shelley - San Jose Sharks • During the 2010-2011 season: 28 players were involved in 10 or more fighting altercations HJ fighting altercations players were involved 5 or more WHO FIGHTS THE LEHSl(?*** 13 Detroit Red Wings 18 Nashville Predators 20 Tampa Bay Lightning Phoenix Coyotes 24 Florida Panthers 25 Carolina Hurricanes 28 Chicago Blackhawks Vancouver Canucks Buffalo Sabres 32 Montreal Canadiens BREAKING RECORDS The highest number of punches landed during a fight in the 2010-2011 season occurred in a fight between The longest fight during the 2010-2011 season was between VS Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond Cam Janssen Jody Shelley Jim Vandermeer 22 punches, and Janssen threw 25. Total punches landed: 37 Shelley landed Letourneau-Leblond 21 punches. landed 16 punches. Vandermeer threw The fight lasted 4 On March 5, 2004, the 419 Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers set an NHL record for combined penalty minutes: TOUGHEST TEAM SPORT According to a recent study done by ESPN, based on endurance, strength, power, speed, agility, flexibility, nerve, durability, hand-eye coordination, and analytic aptitude, ICE HOCKEY IS THE MOST DEMANDING TEAM SPORT IN THE WORLD. Only boxing was ranked higher as a sport overall. Based on the above statistics, there is no doubt this rings true! SOURCES http://www.hockeyfights.com/stats/ http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2004-09-02-pros-cons-fighting_x.htm http://www.injuryresearch.bc.ca/publications/fact%20sheets/icehockey%20fact%20sheet.pdf http://www.hughston.com/hha/a.hockey.htm http://pressdemocrat.stats.com/nhl/story.asp7i-20110516190915133024108&ref-hea&tm-&src= http://bleacherreport.com/artidles/100933-don-sanderson-lets-not-turn-a-tragedy-into-a-farce http://www.njyhl.org/pages/hockey101/101_penalties.html http://www.dailyfaceoff.com/24966/concussions-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly http://dropyourgloves.com/fights/leaguefights.aspx?league-1 http://www.muscleprodigy.com/the-toughest-nhl-hockey-players-of-all-time-arcl-1821.html http://extremehockeyfights.com/2010/05/01/record-setting-nhl-hackey-brawl