After a very rough Friday night, I read a very interesting article on ESPN.com written by Scott Burnside. I think Mr. Burnside makes a few good points regarding enforcers’ roles in the new NHL. It has been my fear that with the new CBA, roster spots are going to be a lot more valuable then they once were, and teams are going to have to think long and hard about how to fill them. Do you want to spend the 450K on a Kip Brennan in Anaheim, who really only brings one thing to the table, or do you spend that cash on a guy that can play a little bit, but can also defend himself?
I love hockey. I love a good hockey fight. In my opinion carrying a guy that can fight is as important as carrying a guy that can score. Even if they never see the ice, or get a couple of shifts a game, I think it keeps the opposition honest. I have seen first hand what the lack of an enforcer can mean to a team. Lowell hasn’t had a tough guy willing to fight in several years. Opposing teams know when they come into the Tsongas; they get a night off from fighting, and a green light to start running around. It seems in the new NHL, GM’s are counting on the game being faster, and wide open. I think rosters are going to be filled with more skilled players, and the resident "tough guy" will be a guy that can skate, but also can defend himself if need be. Will this give opposing teams the green light to start taking liberties with other guys?
Near the end of the ESPN article, Burnside cites the Lightning as having won the Cup, with no real enforcer to speak of. Interestingly, Tampa Bay signed 6’7" Monster Mitch Fritz in the off season. Here we have the very definition of a tough guy. A guy that brings one thing to the table, and only one: Fighting. There is no way Fritz can play at the NHL level. The man can not skate. So why sign him? I wonder if the true tough guys in hockey today will be kept on ice, no pun intended, in the AHL, and get the call if they are expecting a real grudge match type victory. Is this the beginning of enforcers as a Carnival Side show?
This is like EA’s NHL ’94 when they removed the fighting. Oh sure, they also introduced the one-timer that year. But a public outcry saw the fisticuffs re-introduced in the very next version. Could the same happen in the NHL? Would frustrated fans be able to save the “Goon Factor”?
Perhaps. Is it time to start a grassroots effort now?