This Monday Jonathan Roy, a backup goalie for the Quebec Remparts, participated in a playoff game hockey brawl where he skated to his counterpart on the other team, challenged that team member to a fight, and then proceeded to pummel the team member, despite the fact that his opponent did not defend himself, did not return a single blow. The video is here, just in case you think maybe I’m just a squeamish girl who can’t handle a good hockey fight.
Jonathan Roy then proceeded to flip the bird to the entire crowd in the arena before skating off the ice.
Yes, fighting is part of the game of hockey. The other players on the ice were fighting. Jonathan’s actions were something else. A very critical something else.
Shame on you, Jonathan Roy.
Yes, and killing is part of war. It’s only when soldiers kill each other in ‘mean’ ways that we think war’s glorious image is tarnished.
It is fighting that tarnishes hockey. But the powers that be have deemed this to be an acceptable trade-off for the eye balls it attracts (in some parts of the world, fights are the only clips that get shown on TV).
I expect that Junior Roy has just helped his long term career by demonstrating ‘heart’ & ‘gumption’.
paul
I see things very differently Paul. I believe that rules of engagement are the the only thing that keep us from being savages. Anyone can kill each other – we’ve been doing that forever and will continue forever – however, if we can try as a society, to set boundaries that acknowledge our violent heritage but apply social pressure in cases where the soldier (or the hockey player) no longer performs a job, but instead revels in bloodlust, I believe we can at least try to bring some sense of self-awareness to it all.
When I saw this clip on the news, I was appauled. These days, given my TV-generation-desensitization it takes quite a bit to cause such a reaction in me. I then tried to answer my 3-year-old’s question, “Why is that man hitting that other man, Daddy?” I had no answer, other than “the man in red isn’t a nice man.”
I can’t believe that Roy’s allowed to continue to play, without repercussion. As far as I’m concerned, that’s not hockey, that’s criminal action. It wasn’t a fight, it was an unprovoked, savage attack. If that happened anywhere else than the rink, he’d be up against criminal charges. For some reason, wearing goalie pads immunizes him…
Pam, I agree completely, but we have very different views of what are the appropriate ‘rules of engagement’ for hockey. Ban it, and attract fans through speed & skill, rather than fists & brawn.
Fighting is encouraged at the highest levels, but we are shocked when we see it in lower levels (played by those who would sell their souls to be at the top level). What a surprise.
paul
p.s. for context, I play twice a week with a mix of kids and Dads. So I know of whence I speak wrt the highest levels :-)
Even more than the mere fight was the man encouraging Jonathan Roy to go for it- yes the coach of his team is a certain Patrick Roy, winner of 4 Stanley Cups and certain Hall of Famer. Oh, and the father of young Jonathan. Who says that the era of the pushy parent is going away?