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Hockey Fights!

Hockey Fight

Courtesy of Jeff Morin

Whether you agree with violence or not, there is a certain excitement when you watch two players beat the snot out of each other on the ice. A hockey scrap always gets the crowd going and it can change the momentum of a game. Good players, like NHL superstar Mario Lemieux don't fight, but even they know how to defend themselves.

Proper Fighting Skills:

What's the best way to protect yourself if you're in a hockey fight? Dustin McArthur plays for the Corpus Christie Ice Rays of the WPHL. He runs a hockey fight camp during the summer for kids. "The most important thing is where you grab your opponent. You should grab around the elbow so your opponent can't get his arm up. If he can't get his arm up, he can't hit you," says McArthur. "The more things about the game you know how to do, the better. A player who can score, check and fight is more valuable than a player that can only score," he says.

Top Players Don't Fight

Fighting isn't allowed in minor or high school hockey. Many leagues around North America even give extra points to teams that don't get into fights or take penalties. This means you probably won't get into a fight until you move on to play junior or pro hockey. "It's important you know how to protect yourself. It's a safety issue. You're less likely to get hurt when you move on to the pros if you know how to fight," says McArthur who dropped the gloves 14 times for the Ice Rays in the 2001 season. You're actually even less likely to get hurt if you don't fight at all. The top players in the NHL rarely get into fights. Paul Kariya, Joe Sakic and Jaromir Jagr never drop the gloves - they take care of business with their crisp passes and rocket shots.

What do you think about hockey fights? A great part of the game or just a dumb way for meatheads to slap each other around? your hockey fight thoughts to Kidzworld.