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If you really want to see some shmucking about on the ice rink, I would suggest you go and watch a Paul Newman movie. It's called Slap Shot. And get ready to laugh your nuts off. There's an idea for you. React to the movie Slap Shot!
85-90% were legal hit. Best Fighter, Chris Simon, sadly when he was brutaly taking every brawler in the league, not much of his game were recorded. He was so fierce then after a few year he became a good player, not just a goon , because other players got scared of him so he didn't have to fight anymore.
You’ll notice most of these hits occur when the player has his head down or isn’t aware of his surroundings. “Keep your head up” is a core tenet of the sport.
In hockey you are allowed to body check an opposing player when they are carrying the puck. A check basically just means slamming your body into theirs to knock them down or hit them into the boards. The two main types are shoulder check and hip check where you lead with that part of the body. You are supposed to keep your elbow tucked you can get a penalty for sticking it out especially near the opponents head. Checks that are illegal is anything hitting the head, hitting them directly in the back into the boards, and charging meaning taking three or more strides or leaving your feet in a check. Other than that it's fairly open, if the player is carrying the puck you can just hit them with your body. Most of the checks in the video were legal, maybe some charging.
@DNReacts I'd add the not hitting the head rules are relatively recent. And the wording is the head can not be the principal point of contact. Also you can raise your elbows in a follow through just can't initiate the hit with them up.
@@DNReacts I would only add that, if you just had the puck and passed it off, you're fully eligible to be hit for about a full second before it's going to be called a late hit.
Actually any head contact in the European leagues and international play is illegal but not in the NHL. In the NHL targetiing (picking) the head is illegal. But even being the principle point of contact it can be a legal hit if it occurs while delivering a full bodycheck. There's a very good video called "Player Safety: Hard Legal Hits" that gives examples of both legal and illegal head contact. It's not a blanket "no head contact" in the NHL. How the head contact occurs determines legality. Also with charging it's leaving your feet prior to contact, launching yourself at a player, that is illegal. Feet leaving the ice after initial contact is made is not illegal. There's a lot of fine lines in NHL rules.
#1 fighter in the NHL history to this day would still be in my opinion Bob Probert! There's been hundreds of great fighters in the NHL history, but hands down I rank him #1. R.I.P Bob Probert!
Yes! Probert and Joey Kocur were called the Bruise Brothers. Absolute legends in Detroit. Kocur was known to throw a punch so hard it would literally break helmets.
During the late end of the Detroit Red Wings Dynasty, Niklas Kronwall was a checking beast. "Kronwall" became used as a verb for a bit hit. He was a relatively small guy, but laid down viscious checks. "He just got Kronwalled..."
The Bruins didn’t play the wings much during those years, but I was always scared when he was on the ice. Milan Lucic is a player that threw some big checks and would fight as well too. I’m surprised his check through the glass is in most complications
What you were seeing as an "elbow" is shoulder hit where the player lifts the elbow after the principal point of contact is made to give extra "thump" as a pushoff. This is sometimes called a "shoulder shiv". The elbow can never be the point of contact to the player around the head. There are a lot of discrepancies to the rules on hitting which are up to the ref's interpretation ie. charging, point of contact, targeting etc. Also I know they look viscous but the hip checks where the players flip over the guy are usually the least painful. Unfortunately they've been somewhat phased out in today's fast paced hockey and the last guy I can remember who did it consistently was Keith Ballard.
@@DNReacts Yeah totally understand. Especially since the camera angle is where it is and you see their shoulder/forearm lift up. Even the commentators question it sometimes as well.
My favorite quote for hockey : Is hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. We need to have the strength and power of a football player, the stamina of a marathon runner, and the concentration of a brain surgeon. But we need to put all this together while moving at high speeds on a cold and slippery surface while 5 other guys use clubs to try and kill us. Oh yeah, did I mention that this whole time we're standing on blades 1/8 of an inch thick? Is ice hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. Next question. Brendan Shanahan
This pretty much sums it all. Although with American football you literally cut short your quality of life for the rest of your life.. Ultimate sacrifice for your family I guess in ensuring a better future for them..
@@paulcrete5605 The reason American football has so many bad head injuries is how they are forced to tackle, with ice you can carry momentum into the hit so you don't need to keep your feet moving. It allows you to get your head out of the way. In American football and rugby to deliver a hit with the same speed and power you do in ice hockey you have to keep you feet moving so you have to be standing straight up, this makes it so most tackles require you to lead the hit with your head.
I know you're quoting, but it's a bit of an exaggeration to say stamina of a marathon runner, lines switch all the time and you get rest. Players skate 4 ish miles per game not 26.2 come on now. Concentration of a brain surgeon?? Every millimeter a brain surgeon moves could determine if someone lives or dies, hockey isn't that deep. Yeah it's hard and impressive, but lets not be ridiculous
Awesome videos guys, glad you're tackling some hockey. Here's some pointers on legal hitting: By today's standards of the game, a lot of the hits you see here would draw a penalty (other team gets an extra man 5 on 4 rather than the usual 5 on 5) for a duration of time depending on the penalty type). They're trying to eradicate pretty much anything that makes the head the primary point of contact or anything that throws a player face first into the boards(very dangerous for both your brain and neck). You also can't take multiple strides into a player(charging) and you can't launch upwards into a player's head(with your feet leaving the ice). As for the use of the elbow, it's fine as long as it stays low and not deliberately striking the other player. Elbowing IS a penalty but generally deals with elbows directed at the head. Some of the use of the elbows you saw look weird at full speed but generally it's more of a forearm push to the chest/shoulders of the other player which is legal. Finally, as others mentioned only players with or in the process of interacting with the puck can be hit. For fights, a few names come to mind, mostly retired players but Georges Laraque, Stu Grimson(literally nicknamed the Grim Reaper), Tie Domi and the legend Bob Probert(amazing documentary film on him and his struggles came out a few years back). Today's game doesn't have nearly as many fighters, I think the most recent ones I could come up with are Dan Carcillo and John Scott(great story there to look into surrounding an all-star game)
Actually the head can be the priciple point of contact and still be legal. Targeting (picking) the head is illegal. The primary difference is hitting "into the body" as opposed to just "targeting the head". When hiting into the body head contact becomes incidental to delivering a full body check even if the head is the principle point of contact. Another exemption is if the target player significantly changed direction or body/head position just prior to contact. In that case the checker simply doesn't have time to react so the head contact isn't targeted. Also the feet can leave the ice after initial contact is made. Launching yourself prior to contact is a charging penalty. It may seem I'm being nitpicky but in my experience many people don't fully understand the fine print of these two rules.
@@philiphoy1373 Except that's not really how it's officiated on-ice or by the DoPS. I'm sure you're right on the literal rulebook interpretation but given that it's quasi-impossible to determine intent, generally speaking the DoPS has regulated against any primary contact to the head rather than on intent. Maybe I just have a really skewed vision of it though.
Tony Twist was the man. Absolutely a menace on the ice, great dude off the ice. Met him years ago. Used to modify his sweater so that if it got grabbed in a fight the sleeve would tear and he could keep punching dudes.
Cheers from USA, I just found your channel and it's nice that you're showing an interest in our sports. It's fun watching you guys learn about them and get why they're popular over here and also to read the comments because I'm learning lots of stuff I didn't know before as well
Our sports ? Dems fighting word bub ! Everyone in the world knows no matter which US team wins the cup , it's the Canadians who fought for it and won it .
The Broad St. Bullies era. This is the team that "chased the Soviet Union" off of the ice. With a player named Dave The Hammer Schultz you know you have a team with a reputation.
Penalties are often assessed for all of the extra roughing and fighting going on after the hit. Roughing is punching someone with your gloves still on. If you body check someone who isn't carrying the puck or immediately after they get rid of it, it's an interference penalty. Minor penalties are 2 mins, majors are five for vicious fouls or attempt to injure. Most of those plays in the video were legal and awesome. Kevin Bieksa can fight pretty good.
Thank you Scott for the context. Interesting regarding penalty times. Is there anything a player can be kicked out/ejected for? Or is a 5 minute penalty the maximum?
@@DNReacts The more severe penalties are ten minutes or a game. Sometimes a player will get "ten and a game" if their infraction is particularly egregious. To get a ten it's usually a "misconduct" which means they were mouthing off to the ref too much. Illegal check to the head (if the head is the principle point of contact) can be ten if it's egregious, and a game if the ref judges they did it on purpose. Players rarely get a game.
@@DNReacts Many penalties can get a 5 minute and a match penalty (which includes at least a 1 game unpaid suspension) if they are egregious and dangerous. "Some of the actions that warrant a major 5-minute penalty include butt-ending, checking from behind, fighting, being a fight instigator, holding or grabbing someone's face mask, pushing off of an opposing player with a skate, leaving the bench during an altercation, and spearing." Spearing is using your stick on someone as if it's a spear.
Based on today's game, the four main rules to look for with a clean hit is that the player making the hit doesn't jump into the hit (although the feet leaving the ice from momentum after contact is okay, so long as it isn't before), the player doesn't hit or lead with the elbow, the head is NOT the main point of contact, and the player being hit needs to have the puck or have gotten rid of it immediately before
Love seeing Brits appreciating our beautiful sport on ice haha. There’s a lot of good legendary fighters but one that stands out for me is Tie Domi mainly because he was a much smaller bloke than the rest of them but was tough as nails. After his scrap with Bob Probert he skated passed him doing the heavyweight champion hand motion around his waste during his rookie season 😂😂😂
Sometimes the check is made to look even more spectacular by the guy who is getting checked when he tries to avoid it. He sees the guy about to hit him at the last second and tries to jump out of the way, and since his feet are off the ice, when he gets hit he goes head over heels. And sometimes the hardest hits are accidents, two guys not looking running into each other. A famous case was Brendan Shanahan & Mike Knuble ran into each other and both got knocked out, Shanahan especially. Shanahan had to be stretchered off the ice. It's on RUclips if you want to look it up.
Oh this was my favorite sport growing up. I wanted to play in a league so bad as a goalie but we were too poor. Dominik Hasek was my favorite player. There's a lot of great hitters I've seen over the years. There's too many to name, but Scott Stevens is probably the most famous for hard hits. Check out his hit against Paul Kariya in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals. I'm surprised it wasn't shown in this video. Niklas Kronwall was my favorite hard hitter and was in this video a lot. And when I think of NHL fighters, first ones that come to mind is Bob Probert and Darren McCarty (but I'm biased). Probert was a beast of a fighter in the 80's and 90's. McCarty became famous being one of the players of the "Grind Line" and for his fight with Claude Lemieux in the 90's when he got revenge for Claude's dirty hit against teammate Kris Draper that broke his jaw, nose, and cheekbones. You guys gotta watch a video on the rivalry between the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche. One of the best rivalries in the sport between 2 championship caliber teams that lasted years. Those were my favorite years of hockey. Other beast fighters were Stu Grimson, Marty McSorley, Tie Domi, Donald Brashear, Joey Kocur, and Georges Laraque.
@@DNReacts I'd recommend Deep Rewind episode covering the Lemieux - Draper hit and the ensuing bitterness. It shows how vicious and unapologetic hockey can get. Spoiler alert: Lemieux never apologized and there is a great podcast with both McCarthy and Claude talking about their altercations.
One of the guys in these clips, Niklas Kronwall, getting hit by him is getting "Kronwalled." There are videos of just hits by him you should react to. Bob Probert, Stu Grimson (The Grim Reaper), Marty McSorley, Derek Boogard and Rob Ray are other big hitters and tough fighters too.
One thing in addition that I haven't read yet... you can only hit the person WITH THE PUCK. You can't just hit anybody. The referee's do allow a bit of leeway as to how long after a player passes the puck that he can be hit, but it is not more than a second or two. Everything else I have read seems to be right on point. Anything now days that is a shot to the shoulder/head area would be a penalty.
Traditionally most teams try to get one or more "enforcers" or "goons" - they may not be the most talented skaters, scorers or defenders but they can deal out punishment like nobody else and will defend the skill players on their teams. It's a pretty awesome aspect of ice hockey honestly
Generally speaking, hitting is allowed on whoever is carrying the puck, so long as its not a trip or headhunting, and its not done with the stick. Knocking the guy into the bench is perfectly fine as long as its within those constraints.
Study showed NHL players average ~80% the size of NFL players but hit ~20% harder. The athleticism needed to go full speed (there’s a reason why they have to swap off the ice every minute) and manage intricate puck handling while knowing you might be rocked with the force of Mac truck is amazing!!
Jomboy also has some hockey breakdowns, if you guys wanna revisit his channel. He's way less knowledgeable about hockey than he is baseball, but the videos are still well explained and entertaining.
not so much for fighitng. . but one of the most feared hitters over the years would be in the 90's early 2000's , which was scott stevens. . even espn used to do top countdowns of his hits back then. . was also a great defensemen as well
Chris Neil was such a great fighter and decent all around player. Huge hitter. Always protected his team. I grew up in his hometown in Ontario Canada. Probably the only reason Ottawa is my team 😅
The one player known for epic fights was Ron Hextall. He was a goalie. During one fight, he was taking on 3 guys at once, during a huge fight. He was also the first goalie to score multiple goals.
I’ve been a casual fan of hockey and I don’t know who the fighter of the sport but... In hockey just like football (soccer) you can get 3 goals and it’s a hat trick. Geordie Howe had his own hat trick of a Goal, an assist, and a fight. I always found it funny that a fight was one of them, not just a penalty but straight up fisticuffs.
Wicked sport I love 8t. Moved to Canada from England 20yrs ago and took to it like a duck to water. It's fast, skillful, elegant and violent all at the same time. Similarities to football with the added bonus of less selfish player and less prima donas. Guys jumping right back up after being smashed into the boards at high speed. Connor McDavid is the best player in the league by a long shot right now. Best player since I've lived here. Highly recommend his highlights
I’m glad you guys are watching hockey. I’ve always liked watching his game, but admittedly have a lot to learn. All I know is that they have a guy on the team called “the Enforcer” who’s job us basically just to beat people up. 😂
For the most part, the "Enforcer" role has been phased out in favour of more "pest"-like players that get under people's skins but still can play the game well. The Enforcer role aged very poorly with how fast the game got, turns out if your big guy who's there to fight people lets a goal in every other game the cons outweigh the pros.
@@BlackjackGamer1 Ah, thanks for this. I am really interested in learning more about hockey. Even if it’s been phased out, you gotta love a sport that thought up the whole Enforcer thing to begin with.
You can hit someone if they have the puck, or are within a few feet of it. I don't remember the exact distance you can be from the puck, and still get hit (legally anyways). Scott Stevens from the New Jersey Devils had some of the most Brutal yet Legal Open Ice Hits. He knocked several BIG players unconscious...with Legal hits!
You guys should take a look at some Bobby Orr highlights sometime. He was a defenseman with the Boston Bruins from 1966-76, and is still the only defenseman ever to lead the NHL in total points. He was absolutely spectacular to watch. And, he did fight, even if he’s not known as a fighter. He is the greatest of all time in the opinion of a great percentage of those who saw him play. Sadly, the vast majority of the video from his career has been lost, but, he’d be worth your time. Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux would also be worth a look.
BOB PROBERT is universally accepted as the all time NHL 'enforcer' but of course there have been a number of great fighters & very tough players over the decades...this is by no mean a comprehensive list but simply my own list of the toughest scrappers I saw from the 70's that u can see plenty of youtube fights of Terry O'Reilly Stan Jonathan John Wensink Dave Schultz Tiger Williams Clark Gillies
You guys should check out Ron Hextall, if you wanna see some absolute crazy antics. He's also the first goaltender to actually score a goal. When it comes to fighters Bob Probert, Dave "The Hammer" Schultz and Dave Brown are a few. The above mentioned goaltender is also pretty well known for throwing them.
When you asked about fighters, I immediately scrolled down and expected to see more "Bob Probert" comments. His career was primarily the late 80s and through the 90s, but for fights he's the guy to look for.
Probably the hardest hitting sport when you factor it all in, speed, lack of face protection, boards to get hit into. Great vid, I’m sure you’ve had it explained to you by someone else. I was always taught to put my shoulder into the guys chin (illegal today, now is chest). There was nothing more satisfying than busting out a “garage sale” (guy loses his stick/ gloves/ helmet or any combo). It’s a nasty game but also has a code and was created by “nice Canadians”. Hard people Cheers do more, the older hits are nuts, Scott Stevens comes to mind.
Watch The Code. Lots of answers and explanations there. Then watch Ovitchen, he's A beast. Hockey is the best stress releace, EVER. I used to attend two home games a week and scream my head off. Never felt better.
Of all these hits, the worst are when a player is a few feet away from the boards and gets drilled then goes flying into the boards, like the hit at the 7:00 and 10:14 marks. Most of these hits are pretty clean. Many of the elbows you see, the player actually has the elbow tucked at contact and then pushes off with the elbow which is ok. Main rule is that you can't hit someone from behind or let the head be the "principal point of contact"
"Main rule is that you can't hit someone from behind or let the head be the "principal point of contact"". Of course, this is a new rule, which wasn't in place for most of these hits.
You should react to best NHL dangles and goalie saves to see the pure skill of the game. Connor McDavid would be the best player to react to skill wise...watching him is like watching a video game, cheers
Rules have morphed over the years so if you see some older quality videos where a guys is getting a shoulder to the jaw, that's now illegal, but wasn't always illegal. Couple rules to note: The principle point of contact cannot be the head. If you're the defending player and you see the opponent's numbers, do not drive them into the boards Do not take strides into the player or leap into a player, you should be gliding into a hit Do not go too low (example - marchand against sami salo) The player must have the puck (there is a grace period after the puck is released where you can finish a check) There are definitely others and I invite others to comment below, those are just the big ones that pop into my head.
The basic rules for a legal hit: don't hit somebody away from the play (you can hit someone who has the puck, is about to get it, or just got rid of it), don't hit from behind (especially around the boards), don't aim for the head or below the knees, don't lead with your elbow or use your stick as a weapon, don't accelerate into the hit more than necessary, and don't mess with the goalie. Otherwise, have at it. Best to lead with the shoulder or hip. Not all of these are legal, but most of them are - it's hard to tell at first glance whether they're leading with the shoulder (legal) or elbow (not). Penalties come in a few different degrees of severity: - Minor: You're off the ice for 2 minutes, and your team plays a man down during that time. (The opposing team is said to be "on a power play" and your team is "short-handed".) If the opponents score while on the power play, the minor penalty ends early. If your team is serving multiple penalties, only the one with the least time remaining ends. If both teams are serving penalties such that the teams are at even strength (4-on-4 or, very rarely, 3-on-3), no penalty ends. Most penalties are minor. - Double minor: 4 minutes, same rules. If the opponents score during the first two minutes, the first minor ends and your penalty clock is reset to 2 minutes. Double minor can be given for multiple infractions in quick succession (and I think I've even seen a triple minor once, when a guy got a minor for the original incident and two more in the brawl that followed), but it's most common for hitting an opponent with a high stick and drawing blood. - Major: 5 minutes, your team plays a man down, and the penalty must be served in full no matter how many goals the opposing team scores. Most common for fighting (which is always a major), but almost any penalty can be upgraded if it is severe enough (boarding - a check from behind into the boards - being the most common of these), and there are a few inherently dangerous fouls that are almost always majors. - Misconduct: 10 minutes, but your team is not short-handed as a result. This is rarely given on its own (although it can be for mouthing off at the ref); it's usually part of a "two-and-ten" combo with a minor penalty, in which case a teammate has to serve the minor penalty for you. This usually serves to let tempers cool after an incident or to provide extra punishment for repeated fouls. - Game misconduct: Ejected from the game, but again, your team is not short-handed solely from the game misconduct. Almost never given on its own; usually it's a "five-and-game" combo (again, a teammate serves the major). In fact, most majors except for fighting usually result in a game misconduct as well. - Match penalty: Equivalent to a major + game misconduct + automatic suspension pending a disciplinary hearing. Reserved for extremely serious offenses, generally either intent to injure or an inherently dangerous foul that does result in injury. - Penalty shot: Given for fouls from behind during a breakaway or for certain infractions in the crease (the blue painted area in front of the net). If it would have been a minor penalty otherwise, the penalty shot replaces the minor. Majors and misconduct penalties are still assessed in addition to the penalty shot. There are a few other nuances in situations where multiple penalties are being handed out, but that covers the basics.
What a great comment Dan! This has answered so many questions I had. Brilliant read through this. I’ve got to bookmark this to come back to next time we review NHL Fights as well. Thank you for this.
Keep in mind the average defenceman is 6'3" and 220 pounds. As for fighters there were a lot but Bob Probert was a pretty tough guy. He didn't lose many fights. And would skate away smiling and maybe bleeding too.
The biggest fighters in the NHL are probably from back in the day, like Tie Domi or Bob Probert. Now days fighting is less common, probably the biggest fighters currently are Ryan Reaves or Nic Deslauriers. Refs stop most fights right away now so pure fighters are dinosaurs.
Love the video! There are certain players who are referred to as “enforcers” who’s job are specifically to hit players and usually are the ones ending up in fights. They will stand up for those star players who take a bad hit through the game. Tie domi and bob probers we’re two big names! Great work guys!
Generally the common rules around hits are, Crosschecking - is hitting a player with the shaft of your stick, with both of your hands on the stick. Generally this is done to the back of player. Charging - Taking 3 or more strides on your way to deliver a check. Kneeing - Knee on knee hits can cause a lot of injury so this is taken pretty serious. Interference - Hitting or hindering a player away from the puck. Elbowing - Delivering blows with your elbow to the head. Clipping - Hitting a player at or below the knees. Slew Footing - Basically taking out a players legs from behind to make the fall on their back. Slashing - Coming down on the top of an opponent's stick or hands with your stick. Can cause the stick to break and is quiet painful on the hands. Fighting - Self explanatory, usually will have off setting 5 minute major penalties, you can get an additional penalty for instigating. Goalie interference - The goalie is meant to have unobstructed movement in the blue paint in front of the net. Tripping - Usually done but the stick into another persons skates, often times is accidental. Boarding - If a player is facing the glass from about 1-3 feet away, you can't hit them in the back into the boards. Again just another hit that causes a lot of injuries. High sticking - Hitting a player in the head/face with your stick, these are usually accidental and don't count if it is with the follow through of your shot. Roughing - This is the catch all penalty for anything that seems to cross the line. I believe leaving your feet during a check falls under this as well. I'm sure I am forgetting some but this should at least give you an idea to start. As far as penalties is standard is 2 minutes in the box, you are let out early if the other team scores while your team is disadvantaged. But if the play is 4 on 4 it has no effect. Some penalties draw double minors, these are treated as back to back 2 minute penalties on the same player. Majors are 5 minute penalties and being scored on has no effect. Misconducts/Game misconducts are also a thing but I don't know all the nuances around them. Glad to see you guys exploring hockey. If you ever do a video on Sidney Crosby, one of the biggest stars in the league nearly the last two decades, please do NOT do the top 10 highlights. Every channel seems to do that video and it is outdated and leaves a lot to be desired.
Some but not all rules: You can't leave your skates when you lay a hit (jump into the hit), no checks to the head, can't take excessive strides to make a hit (charging, not entirely sure how many strides is considered legal), can't hit a player from behind (blindside hit), can't hit a player from behind into the boards (boarding), there are rules about how low you can go with a hip check (clipping), can't hit a player without the puck (within like a second of them passing or losing the puck). Just to name a few and give more context! The rules have changed quite a bit and there's a lot that was considered okay a like 15-20 years ago that is not allowed anymore.
My late dad was from London and a devoted Spurs fan his whole life. But in Canada he just loved watching hockey. In the old days they only started showing the game around the start of the second period - I would have to go to bed but then they'd let me up to watch. My mom would make sandwiches and we'd eat them together with my dad and grandfather, also from London. I'm from London too actually, but I was only 2 when they moved to Canada. In those days there were only 6 teams in the league and me and my school friends would know the name and number of pretty much every player in the league. I'm 68 now. So many great players - Wayne Gretzky should be your next watch though. The scoring machine.
Interesting point, in cities that have multiple sports teams - MLB, NFL, NBA & NHL (like my New York City for instance) - players from those other sports seem to absolutely love NHL. You'll always see those other pro athletes at NHL games cheering their asses off
Generally the rules are, it is okay to hit a player: 1. If he has the puck 2. If you don’t leave your feet (ie jumping up to target his head) 3. If your orso hits his torso Also, do not hit from behind, especially if he is facing the boards.
Aaron Downey wasn’t well known but was the best fighter I’ve ever seen in my life. Even beat Ty Domi. The guy was an absolute beast. Chara was one of the most fun to watch fight lol
The most feared guy in NHL history is Bob Probert. Rob Ray is another. They put a rule in place that your jersey has to be tied down because of the way Ray used to fight.
Basic checking(hits) rules: You can only hit the player who has possession of the puck, or within 1-2 seconds after they get rid of the puck.. You can only hit with your shoulder and/or hip. You can't lead with your elbows or stick. Both must be down. Once contact is made, you can push away with your arm/elbow. You cannot target the head, back or the legs. You cannot take more than 2 strides or travel an excessive distance to accelerate through the check(hit). In other words; intentionally gaining speed to inflict higher "damage". You cannot check, push or use your stick to hit an opponent who has their back turned to you. You'll usually get a misconduct if you do this and it forces them to go head first into the boards. You cannot hit goalies. I think that covers it haha. If I missed anything, people will add to it..
a big reason for big hits these days is because there is no fighting, at least not fighting in the 70s 80s sense of the game. Many of the hits in these videos feature a guy with his head down, which makes him fair game, but the guy doing the hitting is taking a 20 foot run at him (Ian Turnbull used to hip check guys into the rafters but he never ran the guy, it was always a case of the forward trying to get around him and Turnbull would simply bend at the waist and launch the guy over top). Try that with Clark Gillies, Bob Probert, Stan Jonathon, Dave Semenko, Terry O Reilly, Bob Nystrom, Dave Brown, Dave Kelly, Kelly Chase, Wendel Clark, Marty McSorley, etc etc etc coming up and tapping you on the shoulder after you run Gretzky or their team's main player. None of the hitters would be running players again after having their face removed from their head.
I've been a ref for about 5 years. I'm now a collegiate referee. The question of legality depends. At the USAH (USA Hockey) youth level. Now a check must be performed with sole intent to separate the opponent from possession of the puck. The questions you did have. Like elbows. Elbowing is is illegal and is a penalty. Penalties can be a 2 min minor, 10 min misconduct, 2-10's which is just the offending player getting slapped with a misconduct and a secondary player serving the 2 minutes. Then there is 5 min majors. These can be stand alone penalties but is almost 100% unheard of at the youth level as a stand alone. Most times these are accompanied with a game misconduct. Which is an automatic ejection from the game. Severity of the punishment a game misc. has comes down to the age of play. Then there is the heftiest penalty which usually requires a hearing. I've only assessed 2 in my career and both were 4 years ago and 2 years ago. Which is a match penalty. It holds an automatic game ejection, a 5 min major is served by a separate player, and that offending player is suspended for 30 days pending a hearing with the board of player safety. At the NHL level. Elbowing is illegal and can be as low as a 2 min minor or a game misc. The other you asked was about hitting their heads. Which is a huge penalty and at the youth level has an automatic 2-10 penalty attached but most times you will be run up for a 5 and a game. It is assessed under head contact and is determined that it was committed. If the player that performed the check made his principle point of contact the head. Now if they fall and hit their head. That is not a penalty.
"stay in the center of the ice." My friend - this is a sure way to get absolutely killed. The center ice hits are by far the most violent in the game. And there is a lot of traffic in the center ice moving very, very fast.
One thing to add about when you can check, is after a player passes the puck, he can only be hit if he has taken less than 3 strides after releasing the puck, which gives the defender a little time to step back from a check. This is because of the speed of the skaters, there is a little time for a defender to make a decision between a legal and illegal check. Also, when you see a game in person, the sound of the checks into the board are really loud. But with all the padding, most of the players don’t feel the hit as hard as it sounds. Our son played hockey from the time he was in kindergarten through college, and still plays in an adult league with some retired AHL players, and it is an exciting game to watch.
Context; The player being hit must have possession of the puck or be within a few feet of the puck otherwise it will be illegal and a penalty will be called. But if a player has the puck along the boards and his jersey numbers are facing the hitter that is illegal but if his front jersey is facing the hitter that would be legal
there are some good rules videos out there. . but generally you should only be hitting the player with the puck or atleast active within a proximity of the puck. . you cant leave you're feat before making contact and like most sports there's been a push to eliminate headshots. . leading with your elbow is also a no go. . most of the hits your seeing that looks like elbows , if you watch the elbow is tucked in till after contact. . id say that majority of these hits are legal
Hockey has some interesting strategies, like one is Pulling the Goalie. Taking the goalie off the Ice to get a sixth skater to help on the forecheck/attack. That strategy is used in two ways, one is during a Delayed Penalty, the team with the advantage will pull their goalie to bring on an extra attacker with no risk, since the play is whistled dead and penalty is enforced once the penalized team has the Puck. The other is late (usually one minute or less remaining) in the 3rd Period (final third of regulation time, hockey is split in to 3 parts,known as Periods,of 20 minutes each) of a close game, the team down by one will pull their goalie to get their extra attacker as a last chance desperation attempt to tie the game and salvage at least a point by forcing overtime (Hockey's league structure works like Football/soccer, the more points you have, the higher you are on the table, points break down like this, two points for a win,one point for a loss in overtime, no points for loss in regulation,there are no draws in the National Hockey League, i'm not sure if other leagues around the world operate the same way).
Kronwall of Detroit was a beast back in the day, hence the term 'Kronwalled'. My favorite player of all time is Pavel Datsyuk, the Barry Sanders of Hockey.
A penalty occurs if you jump up to hit, target the other player's head, use your elbow, or ram someone into the boards when they are helpless. Rules are not always fairly administered.
Unwritten rule. Get up…quick and never get carried off the ice. If you’re hurt make your way off the ice to the bench. Never let them know you are hurting.
2:17 There are a lot of rules concerning ehat constitutes a legal hit, but here are some of the big ones: you may only do so to dispossess a player of the puck (otherwise this is called for interference,) you must enter a hit on a glide (otherwise this is called for charging,) you cannot hold up your stick horizontally across your chest to brace the impact (otherwise this is called for cross-checking,) and you cannot hit a player into the boards with extreme force, intent to injure, or if the player's head is in a compromising position (otherwise this is called for boarding or roughing.)
Love this! By all means check out more hockey (NHL) stuff! 'Delta Highlights' and 'TSN/Sportsnet top 10s' have a bunch of good stuff... This was kinda lacking in the replay department, good as it was. When it comes to fights, Tie Domi, Bob Probert and Georges Laraque are popular picks for the 'top dog' in that regard. You definitely want to check out something like 'best nhl fights'... The aforementioned must have good reels.
This are all shoulder and hip checks for the most part. The rules surrounding hits is that the player you are hitting must either be in control of the puck or just released the puck within two strides of the player making the hit. If you hit a player beyond that point it will be a penalty for either “charging” if it’s post release of the puck or “interference” if the player has yet to receive the puck. Both are 2 minute minor penalties. However “charging” can be upgraded to a 5 minute major. Hits cannot be made above the shoulder or behind the shoulder numbers. Driving a player into the boards with their back to you is illegal and called “Boarding”. This can either be a 2 minute minor penalty or if it is a flagrant disregard of player safety it can be upgraded to a 5 minute major which typically comes with an additional 10 minute “game misconduct” penalty and ejection from the game. All hits to the head are an automatic 5 minute major. Elbows are not allowed to be used when hitting. This is a 2 minute penalty.
Hit #15. As a Leaf fan, I cheered like mad when Phaneuf hit Sauer. That was a huge hit. Looking back, I feel bad. That hit pretty much ended Sauer's career.
If you want to talk about fighting in hockey you have to look at Dave "Tiger" Williams. He played for the Maple Leafs and then the Vancouver Canucks back in the 1970's and 1980's. He holds the record for most PIM's and a good portion of that was because of fighting. Fighting back then was way more prevalent than now. Tiger could also score which made him a very formidable opponent. He was a fan favourite in both cities.
Good hockey videos to watch are the beauty of hockey (good intro to the sport) and the code (about fighting and why it’s not only accepted, but encouraged at the right times). Plenty of videos about bench clearing brawls, especially stuff from the 70s-80s, like when the bruins went into the stands to beat up a fan. People getting hit through the glass (2 clips of that I think). Philadelphia vs red army team is crazy. There’s also some great examples of individual sacrifice such as a bruins player staying on the ice to help kill a penalty after breaking his leg when blocking a shot, and plenty of other examples of players blocking shots. Also crazy injuries like skate to the neck and tons of KOs. There’s no fighter who stands out as the uncontested GOAT, but Wayne Gretzky is widely considered the best forward of all time (nickname “the great one”). He wasn’t a fighter though, and that’s about the only valid criticism of his game. This best hits video is ok but they cut away so fast it’s hard to appreciate the context, or how gnarly some are. Slow motion replay is revealing. Most are legal plays. You can tell if the hitting team touches the puck next but play is allowed to continue (sometimes they stop play anyway though if the player is injured and in a dangerous position). Penalties are delayed until the offending team touches the puck, at which point play is stopped (unless they are scored on in the interim, in which case the penalty is waived). The signal for a delayed penalty is the ref raising his hand (not the linesman, that’s a delayed offside or icing). Basic concept to hitting is you can hit anyone who has the puck or just let go of it. You’re supposed to avoid targeting the head and hitting unreasonably violently into the boards, which is discretionary. Hitting from behind is usually a penalty, but if they turn at the last second it’s their fault. Charging is tough to understand because your feet move either way, but the idea is don’t accelerate through the hit with multiple running steps (maintaining existing speed is ok). Most common penalties are tripping and high sticking (stick to head/neck). You can’t crosscheck (using the stick horizontally to deliver a check), but it’s often overlooked when you’re trying to clear a player away from in front of your goalie (they’ll try to screen him or deflect a shot in). The rules of hockey are excellent. It’s all about rewarding the team that forces play. The ref never gives a team possession, they simply drop the puck between two opposing players after every stoppage (called a faceoff). You’re also allowed to change players on the fly (without a whistle) and pull your goalie (for an extra skater). Things like that make the game truly unique. Hockey is the only sport where you’ll hear the commentators say “he did the right thing” when referring to a player who just got in a fight (watch the code and you’ll get it). They also call the fight in play by play fashion which is hysterical when you think about it. But fighting is just the cherry on top of what is the greatest sport on earth. I hope you enjoy your foray into the NHL.
Many consider the hardest hit of all time to be where Larry Robinson destroyed Gary Dornhoffer in the mid 70s. The game was temporarily halted as the boards had been shifted about an inch. The hit is on RUclips, have a look for yourself.
Hey dudes. I am a life long hockey player and Canadian from Ottawa. Everyone of the hits ***seemed*** legal except maybe a charging and or the one where they are away from the boards but get hit into the boards from a meter or so, you should watch reffs miced up it kind of explains stuff. .
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If you really want to see some shmucking about on the ice rink, I would suggest you go and watch a Paul Newman movie. It's called Slap Shot. And get ready to laugh your nuts off. There's an idea for you. React to the movie Slap Shot!
85-90% were legal hit. Best Fighter, Chris Simon, sadly when he was brutaly taking every brawler in the league, not much of his game were recorded. He was so fierce then after a few year he became a good player, not just a goon , because other players got scared of him so he didn't have to fight anymore.
You’ll notice most of these hits occur when the player has his head down or isn’t aware of his surroundings. “Keep your head up” is a core tenet of the sport.
“Keep your head up and if you do get hit take a number so you can get him back when you get the chance”
Head on a swivel
also notice after most hit, the player get up and rush to make the play. not like another sport when they fake their butthurt ego.
That's what Don Cherry would always say. Don't put your head down. Keep it up and know your surroundings. He was absolutely right.
And your stick on the ice.
In hockey you are allowed to body check an opposing player when they are carrying the puck. A check basically just means slamming your body into theirs to knock them down or hit them into the boards. The two main types are shoulder check and hip check where you lead with that part of the body. You are supposed to keep your elbow tucked you can get a penalty for sticking it out especially near the opponents head. Checks that are illegal is anything hitting the head, hitting them directly in the back into the boards, and charging meaning taking three or more strides or leaving your feet in a check. Other than that it's fairly open, if the player is carrying the puck you can just hit them with your body. Most of the checks in the video were legal, maybe some charging.
Thanks Matt, great read. Makes a lot of these hits now make a lot of sense too. Appreciate it
@DNReacts I'd add the not hitting the head rules are relatively recent. And the wording is the head can not be the principal point of contact.
Also you can raise your elbows in a follow through just can't initiate the hit with them up.
@@DNReacts I would only add that, if you just had the puck and passed it off, you're fully eligible to be hit for about a full second before it's going to be called a late hit.
Actually any head contact in the European leagues and international play is illegal but not in the NHL. In the NHL targetiing (picking) the head is illegal. But even being the principle point of contact it can be a legal hit if it occurs while delivering a full bodycheck. There's a very good video called "Player Safety: Hard Legal Hits" that gives examples of both legal and illegal head contact. It's not a blanket "no head contact" in the NHL. How the head contact occurs determines legality. Also with charging it's leaving your feet prior to contact, launching yourself at a player, that is illegal. Feet leaving the ice after initial contact is made is not illegal. There's a lot of fine lines in NHL rules.
@Philip Hoy yea, they accept that you're both traveling at 20-30 kmph so expecting 100% accuracy is a tad silly.
#1 fighter in the NHL history to this day would still be in my opinion Bob Probert! There's been hundreds of great fighters in the NHL history, but hands down I rank him #1. R.I.P Bob Probert!
Ryan Reaves would whip him.
Yes! Probert and Joey Kocur were called the Bruise Brothers. Absolute legends in Detroit. Kocur was known to throw a punch so hard it would literally break helmets.
Thanks for this. Have added Bob Probert to our list to take a look
@@KB_-_ Also added Joey Kocur. Thank you for the suggestion!
I thought that Clark Gillies and Bobby Niystrom were tough. But I’m not an Islander fan. I am a Ranger fan. Ty Domi was also.
Alright... NOW we're talking! Football is great and all, but HOCKEY is where it's at!
You asked and we delivered 😂
During the late end of the Detroit Red Wings Dynasty, Niklas Kronwall was a checking beast. "Kronwall" became used as a verb for a bit hit. He was a relatively small guy, but laid down viscious checks. "He just got Kronwalled..."
Sounds great, thanks for this Robert, gonna have to add him to our list!
The Bruins didn’t play the wings much during those years, but I was always scared when he was on the ice. Milan Lucic is a player that threw some big checks and would fight as well too. I’m surprised his check through the glass is in most complications
Kronwalled was a literal meme on the internet for probably 3 or 4 years during the late 00s.
What you were seeing as an "elbow" is shoulder hit where the player lifts the elbow after the principal point of contact is made to give extra "thump" as a pushoff. This is sometimes called a "shoulder shiv". The elbow can never be the point of contact to the player around the head.
There are a lot of discrepancies to the rules on hitting which are up to the ref's interpretation ie. charging, point of contact, targeting etc.
Also I know they look viscous but the hip checks where the players flip over the guy are usually the least painful. Unfortunately they've been somewhat phased out in today's fast paced hockey and the last guy I can remember who did it consistently was Keith Ballard.
Thanks Tim. Must admit as the video was going on I was thinking more and more these may mainly be shoulders at impact. Appreciate the context
@@DNReacts Yeah totally understand. Especially since the camera angle is where it is and you see their shoulder/forearm lift up. Even the commentators question it sometimes as well.
My favorite quote for hockey :
Is hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. We need to have the strength and power of a football player, the stamina of a marathon runner, and the concentration of a brain surgeon. But we need to put all this together while moving at high speeds on a cold and slippery surface while 5 other guys use clubs to try and kill us. Oh yeah, did I mention that this whole time we're standing on blades 1/8 of an inch thick? Is ice hockey hard? I don't know, you tell me. Next question.
Brendan Shanahan
This pretty much sums it all. Although with American football you literally cut short your quality of life for the rest of your life.. Ultimate sacrifice for your family I guess in ensuring a better future for them..
@@paulcrete5605 The reason American football has so many bad head injuries is how they are forced to tackle, with ice you can carry momentum into the hit so you don't need to keep your feet moving. It allows you to get your head out of the way. In American football and rugby to deliver a hit with the same speed and power you do in ice hockey you have to keep you feet moving so you have to be standing straight up, this makes it so most tackles require you to lead the hit with your head.
I know you're quoting, but it's a bit of an exaggeration to say stamina of a marathon runner, lines switch all the time and you get rest. Players skate 4 ish miles per game not 26.2 come on now. Concentration of a brain surgeon?? Every millimeter a brain surgeon moves could determine if someone lives or dies, hockey isn't that deep. Yeah it's hard and impressive, but lets not be ridiculous
@@lilnerdboy69 🤓👆
Awesome videos guys, glad you're tackling some hockey.
Here's some pointers on legal hitting:
By today's standards of the game, a lot of the hits you see here would draw a penalty (other team gets an extra man 5 on 4 rather than the usual 5 on 5) for a duration of time depending on the penalty type). They're trying to eradicate pretty much anything that makes the head the primary point of contact or anything that throws a player face first into the boards(very dangerous for both your brain and neck). You also can't take multiple strides into a player(charging) and you can't launch upwards into a player's head(with your feet leaving the ice).
As for the use of the elbow, it's fine as long as it stays low and not deliberately striking the other player. Elbowing IS a penalty but generally deals with elbows directed at the head. Some of the use of the elbows you saw look weird at full speed but generally it's more of a forearm push to the chest/shoulders of the other player which is legal.
Finally, as others mentioned only players with or in the process of interacting with the puck can be hit.
For fights, a few names come to mind, mostly retired players but Georges Laraque, Stu Grimson(literally nicknamed the Grim Reaper), Tie Domi and the legend Bob Probert(amazing documentary film on him and his struggles came out a few years back). Today's game doesn't have nearly as many fighters, I think the most recent ones I could come up with are Dan Carcillo and John Scott(great story there to look into surrounding an all-star game)
Thank you, appreciate the support! We’re seeing the names Tie Domi and Bob Probert come up a lot. I’ve added all of these to our list!
@@DNReacts Look up the video where Tie Domi fights a fan in the penalty box
I thought Tie Domi with 1 punch 🥊 slammed someone.
Actually the head can be the priciple point of contact and still be legal. Targeting (picking) the head is illegal. The primary difference is hitting "into the body" as opposed to just "targeting the head". When hiting into the body head contact becomes incidental to delivering a full body check even if the head is the principle point of contact. Another exemption is if the target player significantly changed direction or body/head position just prior to contact. In that case the checker simply doesn't have time to react so the head contact isn't targeted. Also the feet can leave the ice after initial contact is made. Launching yourself prior to contact is a charging penalty. It may seem I'm being nitpicky but in my experience many people don't fully understand the fine print of these two rules.
@@philiphoy1373 Except that's not really how it's officiated on-ice or by the DoPS. I'm sure you're right on the literal rulebook interpretation but given that it's quasi-impossible to determine intent, generally speaking the DoPS has regulated against any primary contact to the head rather than on intent. Maybe I just have a really skewed vision of it though.
The guy I always think I don't want to fight is Zdeno Chara. The guy is almost seven feet tall and usually made the other guy look like a child.
Seen a few mention Zdeno in the comments. I’ve had to add him to our list even if it’s just to see the shear size of him!
Tony Twist was the man. Absolutely a menace on the ice, great dude off the ice. Met him years ago. Used to modify his sweater so that if it got grabbed in a fight the sleeve would tear and he could keep punching dudes.
Cheers from USA, I just found your channel and it's nice that you're showing an interest in our sports. It's fun watching you guys learn about them and get why they're popular over here and also to read the comments because I'm learning lots of stuff I didn't know before as well
Thank you for the support, we really appreciate it! Really enjoying these videos
Our sports ? Dems fighting word bub ! Everyone in the world knows no matter which US team wins the cup , it's the Canadians who fought for it and won it .
@@kyleklukas4808I was just going to comment...USA sport??? Hockey's CANADIAN baby!!!
@@kyleklukas4808 Amen to that.
The Broad St. Bullies era. This is the team that "chased the Soviet Union" off of the ice. With a player named Dave The Hammer Schultz you know you have a team with a reputation.
All hail " Filthadelia " best Canadian team ever
Penalties are often assessed for all of the extra roughing and fighting going on after the hit. Roughing is punching someone with your gloves still on. If you body check someone who isn't carrying the puck or immediately after they get rid of it, it's an interference penalty. Minor penalties are 2 mins, majors are five for vicious fouls or attempt to injure. Most of those plays in the video were legal and awesome. Kevin Bieksa can fight pretty good.
Thank you Scott for the context. Interesting regarding penalty times. Is there anything a player can be kicked out/ejected for? Or is a 5 minute penalty the maximum?
@@DNReacts The more severe penalties are ten minutes or a game. Sometimes a player will get "ten and a game" if their infraction is particularly egregious. To get a ten it's usually a "misconduct" which means they were mouthing off to the ref too much. Illegal check to the head (if the head is the principle point of contact) can be ten if it's egregious, and a game if the ref judges they did it on purpose. Players rarely get a game.
@@DNReacts Many penalties can get a 5 minute and a match penalty (which includes at least a 1 game unpaid suspension) if they are egregious and dangerous.
"Some of the actions that warrant a major 5-minute penalty include butt-ending, checking from behind, fighting, being a fight instigator, holding or grabbing someone's face mask, pushing off of an opposing player with a skate, leaving the bench during an altercation, and spearing." Spearing is using your stick on someone as if it's a spear.
Based on today's game, the four main rules to look for with a clean hit is that the player making the hit doesn't jump into the hit (although the feet leaving the ice from momentum after contact is okay, so long as it isn't before), the player doesn't hit or lead with the elbow, the head is NOT the main point of contact, and the player being hit needs to have the puck or have gotten rid of it immediately before
Thanks Jacob!
Love seeing Brits appreciating our beautiful sport on ice haha.
There’s a lot of good legendary fighters but one that stands out for me is Tie Domi mainly because he was a much smaller bloke than the rest of them but was tough as nails. After his scrap with Bob Probert he skated passed him doing the heavyweight champion hand motion around his waste during his rookie season 😂😂😂
Sometimes the check is made to look even more spectacular by the guy who is getting checked when he tries to avoid it. He sees the guy about to hit him at the last second and tries to jump out of the way, and since his feet are off the ice, when he gets hit he goes head over heels. And sometimes the hardest hits are accidents, two guys not looking running into each other. A famous case was Brendan Shanahan & Mike Knuble ran into each other and both got knocked out, Shanahan especially. Shanahan had to be stretchered off the ice. It's on RUclips if you want to look it up.
Oh this was my favorite sport growing up. I wanted to play in a league so bad as a goalie but we were too poor. Dominik Hasek was my favorite player.
There's a lot of great hitters I've seen over the years. There's too many to name, but Scott Stevens is probably the most famous for hard hits. Check out his hit against Paul Kariya in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals. I'm surprised it wasn't shown in this video.
Niklas Kronwall was my favorite hard hitter and was in this video a lot.
And when I think of NHL fighters, first ones that come to mind is Bob Probert and Darren McCarty (but I'm biased). Probert was a beast of a fighter in the 80's and 90's. McCarty became famous being one of the players of the "Grind Line" and for his fight with Claude Lemieux in the 90's when he got revenge for Claude's dirty hit against teammate Kris Draper that broke his jaw, nose, and cheekbones.
You guys gotta watch a video on the rivalry between the Detroit Red Wings and Colorado Avalanche. One of the best rivalries in the sport between 2 championship caliber teams that lasted years. Those were my favorite years of hockey.
Other beast fighters were Stu Grimson, Marty McSorley, Tie Domi, Donald Brashear, Joey Kocur, and Georges Laraque.
Thank you for the comment, had a great read. Got all of these on our list now too 👍
@@DNReacts I'd recommend Deep Rewind episode covering the Lemieux - Draper hit and the ensuing bitterness. It shows how vicious and unapologetic hockey can get. Spoiler alert: Lemieux never apologized and there is a great podcast with both McCarthy and Claude talking about their altercations.
The Red Wings and Avalanche had several goalie vs goalie fights, so that one is seconded.
One of the guys in these clips, Niklas Kronwall, getting hit by him is getting "Kronwalled." There are videos of just hits by him you should react to. Bob Probert, Stu Grimson (The Grim Reaper), Marty McSorley, Derek Boogard and Rob Ray are other big hitters and tough fighters too.
Notice how nearly all of them immediately are back on their feet and in the play even after a huge hit. Tough as nails
awesome to see you reacting to hockey. so many amazing skill players in the league these days!
One thing in addition that I haven't read yet... you can only hit the person WITH THE PUCK. You can't just hit anybody. The referee's do allow a bit of leeway as to how long after a player passes the puck that he can be hit, but it is not more than a second or two. Everything else I have read seems to be right on point. Anything now days that is a shot to the shoulder/head area would be a penalty.
Thank you Covewatcher. Appreciate the info. Makes a lot of sense now as well
Off the record; you guys are funny af, keep up the great work. Very much enjoy the content.
Off the record? I want this on the record! 😂 Thank you for the support, love that you’re enjoying the content Gavin
Traditionally most teams try to get one or more "enforcers" or "goons" - they may not be the most talented skaters, scorers or defenders but they can deal out punishment like nobody else and will defend the skill players on their teams. It's a pretty awesome aspect of ice hockey honestly
Generally speaking, hitting is allowed on whoever is carrying the puck, so long as its not a trip or headhunting, and its not done with the stick. Knocking the guy into the bench is perfectly fine as long as its within those constraints.
Thank you Derek. Some of these hits were great. Was a really enjoyable watch
Study showed NHL players average ~80% the size of NFL players but hit ~20% harder.
The athleticism needed to go full speed (there’s a reason why they have to swap off the ice every minute) and manage intricate puck handling while knowing you might be rocked with the force of Mac truck is amazing!!
Amazing little stat that is KB. Thanks
You guys had me giggling. Being at the real game is a blast!
It was so funny! Would be great to see a game!
Bob Probert is a guy most would agree is one to watch for his "enforcement" and many, many, many fights! 💀💥🤛
Yeah Bob’s definitely on the list, so many mentions, sounds like he will be a great watch that we’ll really enjoy.
Jomboy also has some hockey breakdowns, if you guys wanna revisit his channel. He's way less knowledgeable about hockey than he is baseball, but the videos are still well explained and entertaining.
We did really enjoy the Jomboy watch, we’ll have to give him a search for some hockey too
not so much for fighitng. . but one of the most feared hitters over the years would be in the 90's early 2000's , which was scott stevens. . even espn used to do top countdowns of his hits back then. . was also a great defensemen as well
Hockey players are a different breed.
Nuts !
Chris Neil was such a great fighter and decent all around player. Huge hitter. Always protected his team. I grew up in his hometown in Ontario Canada. Probably the only reason Ottawa is my team 😅
The one player known for epic fights was Ron Hextall. He was a goalie. During one fight, he was taking on 3 guys at once, during a huge fight. He was also the first goalie to score multiple goals.
I’ve been a casual fan of hockey and I don’t know who the fighter of the sport but... In hockey just like football (soccer) you can get 3 goals and it’s a hat trick. Geordie Howe had his own hat trick of a Goal, an assist, and a fight. I always found it funny that a fight was one of them, not just a penalty but straight up fisticuffs.
Fun Fact: Gordie Howe actually had zero Gordie Howe hat tricks in his career.
@@prman9984 that’s even more hilarious lol
If you want to see some big open ice hits, watch a Scott Stevens highlight reel.
Wicked sport I love 8t. Moved to Canada from England 20yrs ago and took to it like a duck to water. It's fast, skillful, elegant and violent all at the same time. Similarities to football with the added bonus of less selfish player and less prima donas. Guys jumping right back up after being smashed into the boards at high speed. Connor McDavid is the best player in the league by a long shot right now. Best player since I've lived here. Highly recommend his highlights
I’m glad you guys are watching hockey. I’ve always liked watching his game, but admittedly have a lot to learn. All I know is that they have a guy on the team called “the Enforcer” who’s job us basically just to beat people up. 😂
For the most part, the "Enforcer" role has been phased out in favour of more "pest"-like players that get under people's skins but still can play the game well. The Enforcer role aged very poorly with how fast the game got, turns out if your big guy who's there to fight people lets a goal in every other game the cons outweigh the pros.
@@BlackjackGamer1 Ah, thanks for this. I am really interested in learning more about hockey. Even if it’s been phased out, you gotta love a sport that thought up the whole Enforcer thing to begin with.
Don’t worry Johanna, when we dig into the NHL rules, you can learn right alongside us 😀
@@johanna0131 yeah the enforcer was a staple of '80s and '90s hockey especially
@@legochickenguy4938 Thank you. I’ve got a lot to learn about this sport.
You can hit someone if they have the puck, or are within a few feet of it. I don't remember the exact distance you can be from the puck, and still get hit (legally anyways).
Scott Stevens from the New Jersey Devils had some of the most Brutal yet Legal Open Ice Hits. He knocked several BIG players unconscious...with Legal hits!
You guys should take a look at some Bobby Orr highlights sometime. He was a defenseman with the Boston Bruins from 1966-76, and is still the only defenseman ever to lead the NHL in total points. He was absolutely spectacular to watch. And, he did fight, even if he’s not known as a fighter. He is the greatest of all time in the opinion of a great percentage of those who saw him play. Sadly, the vast majority of the video from his career has been lost, but, he’d be worth your time. Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux would also be worth a look.
Thank you for this John, I’ve added all of these to our list!
Bob Probert and Ty Domi . Legendary fighters
BOB PROBERT is universally accepted as the all time NHL 'enforcer' but of course there have been a number of great fighters & very tough players over the decades...this is by no mean a comprehensive list but simply my own list of the toughest scrappers I saw from the 70's
that u can see plenty of youtube fights of
Terry O'Reilly
Stan Jonathan
John Wensink
Dave Schultz
Tiger Williams
Clark Gillies
Thank you for all of these Mark, appreciate it! Have added them to our list. Bob Probert sounds like a must watch especially
You guys should check out Ron Hextall, if you wanna see some absolute crazy antics. He's also the first goaltender to actually score a goal.
When it comes to fighters Bob Probert, Dave "The Hammer" Schultz and Dave Brown are a few. The above mentioned goaltender is also pretty well known for throwing them.
Thanks for the suggestion Matt, have added to our list
Ron Hextall is on my list of most intense people to play professional sports. He's a man cut loose.
@@peterbainyoung He's also a jerk, so don't bother trying to meet him in person.
Milan Lucic is a beast. Physical player and a menace when he drops the gloves.
When you asked about fighters, I immediately scrolled down and expected to see more "Bob Probert" comments. His career was primarily the late 80s and through the 90s, but for fights he's the guy to look for.
Thanks Duzzy, definitely got Bob Probert on our list to take a look. Sounds like one we will really enjoy
you can't use your elbow. and these days you can't really leave your feet. but by taking the body you separate the player from the puck.
Should clarify, you can't go into a check/hit by jumping or leaving your feet. Contact negotiated fall where you leave your feet is OK of course lol.
Thanks Brian, makes sense
Probably the hardest hitting sport when you factor it all in, speed, lack of face protection, boards to get hit into.
Great vid, I’m sure you’ve had it explained to you by someone else. I was always taught to put my shoulder into the guys chin (illegal today, now is chest). There was nothing more satisfying than busting out a “garage sale” (guy loses his stick/ gloves/ helmet or any combo). It’s a nasty game but also has a code and was created by “nice Canadians”. Hard people
Cheers do more, the older hits are nuts, Scott Stevens comes to mind.
You two would love the videos where the protective glass around the rink shatters after a big hit.
We definitely would. Going to have to give this a search. Thanks Jason
Watch The Code. Lots of answers and explanations there. Then watch Ovitchen, he's A beast.
Hockey is the best stress releace, EVER. I used to attend two home games a week and scream my head off. Never felt better.
Thank you Stepperg, we’ve got this one added to our list. Sounds like a pretty sensible place for us to start
And I had just become a grandmother!
Of all these hits, the worst are when a player is a few feet away from the boards and gets drilled then goes flying into the boards, like the hit at the 7:00 and 10:14 marks. Most of these hits are pretty clean. Many of the elbows you see, the player actually has the elbow tucked at contact and then pushes off with the elbow which is ok. Main rule is that you can't hit someone from behind or let the head be the "principal point of contact"
"Main rule is that you can't hit someone from behind or let the head be the "principal point of contact"". Of course, this is a new rule, which wasn't in place for most of these hits.
You should react to best NHL dangles and goalie saves to see the pure skill of the game. Connor McDavid would be the best player to react to skill wise...watching him is like watching a video game, cheers
Thank you for these suggestions, have added these all to our list!
Rules have morphed over the years so if you see some older quality videos where a guys is getting a shoulder to the jaw, that's now illegal, but wasn't always illegal.
Couple rules to note:
The principle point of contact cannot be the head.
If you're the defending player and you see the opponent's numbers, do not drive them into the boards
Do not take strides into the player or leap into a player, you should be gliding into a hit
Do not go too low (example - marchand against sami salo)
The player must have the puck (there is a grace period after the puck is released where you can finish a check)
There are definitely others and I invite others to comment below, those are just the big ones that pop into my head.
Thank you for this, appreciate the info
The basic rules for a legal hit: don't hit somebody away from the play (you can hit someone who has the puck, is about to get it, or just got rid of it), don't hit from behind (especially around the boards), don't aim for the head or below the knees, don't lead with your elbow or use your stick as a weapon, don't accelerate into the hit more than necessary, and don't mess with the goalie. Otherwise, have at it. Best to lead with the shoulder or hip. Not all of these are legal, but most of them are - it's hard to tell at first glance whether they're leading with the shoulder (legal) or elbow (not).
Penalties come in a few different degrees of severity:
- Minor: You're off the ice for 2 minutes, and your team plays a man down during that time. (The opposing team is said to be "on a power play" and your team is "short-handed".) If the opponents score while on the power play, the minor penalty ends early. If your team is serving multiple penalties, only the one with the least time remaining ends. If both teams are serving penalties such that the teams are at even strength (4-on-4 or, very rarely, 3-on-3), no penalty ends. Most penalties are minor.
- Double minor: 4 minutes, same rules. If the opponents score during the first two minutes, the first minor ends and your penalty clock is reset to 2 minutes. Double minor can be given for multiple infractions in quick succession (and I think I've even seen a triple minor once, when a guy got a minor for the original incident and two more in the brawl that followed), but it's most common for hitting an opponent with a high stick and drawing blood.
- Major: 5 minutes, your team plays a man down, and the penalty must be served in full no matter how many goals the opposing team scores. Most common for fighting (which is always a major), but almost any penalty can be upgraded if it is severe enough (boarding - a check from behind into the boards - being the most common of these), and there are a few inherently dangerous fouls that are almost always majors.
- Misconduct: 10 minutes, but your team is not short-handed as a result. This is rarely given on its own (although it can be for mouthing off at the ref); it's usually part of a "two-and-ten" combo with a minor penalty, in which case a teammate has to serve the minor penalty for you. This usually serves to let tempers cool after an incident or to provide extra punishment for repeated fouls.
- Game misconduct: Ejected from the game, but again, your team is not short-handed solely from the game misconduct. Almost never given on its own; usually it's a "five-and-game" combo (again, a teammate serves the major). In fact, most majors except for fighting usually result in a game misconduct as well.
- Match penalty: Equivalent to a major + game misconduct + automatic suspension pending a disciplinary hearing. Reserved for extremely serious offenses, generally either intent to injure or an inherently dangerous foul that does result in injury.
- Penalty shot: Given for fouls from behind during a breakaway or for certain infractions in the crease (the blue painted area in front of the net). If it would have been a minor penalty otherwise, the penalty shot replaces the minor. Majors and misconduct penalties are still assessed in addition to the penalty shot.
There are a few other nuances in situations where multiple penalties are being handed out, but that covers the basics.
What a great comment Dan! This has answered so many questions I had. Brilliant read through this. I’ve got to bookmark this to come back to next time we review NHL Fights as well. Thank you for this.
Keep in mind the average defenceman is 6'3" and 220 pounds. As for fighters there were a lot but Bob Probert was a pretty tough guy. He didn't lose many fights. And would skate away smiling and maybe bleeding too.
Dave Semenko
Jacob Trouba probably has his own compilation video just from this season alone
The biggest fighters in the NHL are probably from back in the day, like Tie Domi or Bob Probert. Now days fighting is less common, probably the biggest fighters currently are Ryan Reaves or Nic Deslauriers. Refs stop most fights right away now so pure fighters are dinosaurs.
Love the video! There are certain players who are referred to as “enforcers” who’s job are specifically to hit players and usually are the ones ending up in fights. They will stand up for those star players who take a bad hit through the game. Tie domi and bob probers we’re two big names! Great work guys!
Thank you Alex, appreciate the info and the support
Current heavyweight fighter is probably Ryan Reaves, but all-time my favorite was Bob Probert.
One of the greatest team sports of all time. I love me some hockey.
Generally the common rules around hits are,
Crosschecking - is hitting a player with the shaft of your stick, with both of your hands on the stick. Generally this is done to the back of player.
Charging - Taking 3 or more strides on your way to deliver a check.
Kneeing - Knee on knee hits can cause a lot of injury so this is taken pretty serious.
Interference - Hitting or hindering a player away from the puck.
Elbowing - Delivering blows with your elbow to the head.
Clipping - Hitting a player at or below the knees.
Slew Footing - Basically taking out a players legs from behind to make the fall on their back.
Slashing - Coming down on the top of an opponent's stick or hands with your stick. Can cause the stick to break and is quiet painful on the hands.
Fighting - Self explanatory, usually will have off setting 5 minute major penalties, you can get an additional penalty for instigating.
Goalie interference - The goalie is meant to have unobstructed movement in the blue paint in front of the net.
Tripping - Usually done but the stick into another persons skates, often times is accidental.
Boarding - If a player is facing the glass from about 1-3 feet away, you can't hit them in the back into the boards. Again just another hit that causes a lot of injuries.
High sticking - Hitting a player in the head/face with your stick, these are usually accidental and don't count if it is with the follow through of your shot.
Roughing - This is the catch all penalty for anything that seems to cross the line. I believe leaving your feet during a check falls under this as well.
I'm sure I am forgetting some but this should at least give you an idea to start.
As far as penalties is standard is 2 minutes in the box, you are let out early if the other team scores while your team is disadvantaged. But if the play is 4 on 4 it has no effect.
Some penalties draw double minors, these are treated as back to back 2 minute penalties on the same player.
Majors are 5 minute penalties and being scored on has no effect.
Misconducts/Game misconducts are also a thing but I don't know all the nuances around them.
Glad to see you guys exploring hockey. If you ever do a video on Sidney Crosby, one of the biggest stars in the league nearly the last two decades, please do NOT do the top 10 highlights. Every channel seems to do that video and it is outdated and leaves a lot to be desired.
This is a great comment Myles. Really appreciate this, had a great read. Thank you
Some but not all rules: You can't leave your skates when you lay a hit (jump into the hit), no checks to the head, can't take excessive strides to make a hit (charging, not entirely sure how many strides is considered legal), can't hit a player from behind (blindside hit), can't hit a player from behind into the boards (boarding), there are rules about how low you can go with a hip check (clipping), can't hit a player without the puck (within like a second of them passing or losing the puck). Just to name a few and give more context! The rules have changed quite a bit and there's a lot that was considered okay a like 15-20 years ago that is not allowed anymore.
My late dad was from London and a devoted Spurs fan his whole life. But in Canada he just loved watching hockey.
In the old days they only started showing the game around the start of the second period - I would have to go to bed but then they'd let me up to watch. My mom would make sandwiches and we'd eat them together with my dad and grandfather, also from London. I'm from London too actually, but I was only 2 when they moved to Canada.
In those days there were only 6 teams in the league and me and my school friends would know the name and number of pretty much every player in the league. I'm 68 now.
So many great players - Wayne Gretzky should be your next watch though. The scoring machine.
That’s a great story! Thank you so much for sharing 😊 we’ve recently taken a look at Gretzky! What a player! Video will be out soon!
Interesting point, in cities that have multiple sports teams - MLB, NFL, NBA & NHL (like my New York City for instance) - players from those other sports seem to absolutely love NHL. You'll always see those other pro athletes at NHL games cheering their asses off
Hockey is the hardest and most interesting sport to master. Why I love it so.
Generally the rules are, it is okay to hit a player:
1. If he has the puck
2. If you don’t leave your feet (ie jumping up to target his head)
3. If your orso hits his torso
Also, do not hit from behind, especially if he is facing the boards.
Aaron Downey wasn’t well known but was the best fighter I’ve ever seen in my life. Even beat Ty Domi. The guy was an absolute beast.
Chara was one of the most fun to watch fight lol
The most feared guy in NHL history is Bob Probert. Rob Ray is another. They put a rule in place that your jersey has to be tied down because of the way Ray used to fight.
Basic checking(hits) rules:
You can only hit the player who has possession of the puck, or within 1-2 seconds after they get rid of the puck..
You can only hit with your shoulder and/or hip. You can't lead with your elbows or stick. Both must be down. Once contact is made, you can push away with your arm/elbow.
You cannot target the head, back or the legs.
You cannot take more than 2 strides or travel an excessive distance to accelerate through the check(hit). In other words; intentionally gaining speed to inflict higher "damage".
You cannot check, push or use your stick to hit an opponent who has their back turned to you. You'll usually get a misconduct if you do this and it forces them to go head first into the boards.
You cannot hit goalies.
I think that covers it haha. If I missed anything, people will add to it..
a big reason for big hits these days is because there is no fighting, at least not fighting in the 70s 80s sense of the game. Many of the hits in these videos feature a guy with his head down, which makes him fair game, but the guy doing the hitting is taking a 20 foot run at him (Ian Turnbull used to hip check guys into the rafters but he never ran the guy, it was always a case of the forward trying to get around him and Turnbull would simply bend at the waist and launch the guy over top).
Try that with Clark Gillies, Bob Probert, Stan Jonathon, Dave Semenko, Terry O Reilly, Bob Nystrom, Dave Brown, Dave Kelly, Kelly Chase, Wendel Clark, Marty McSorley, etc etc etc coming up and tapping you on the shoulder after you run Gretzky or their team's main player.
None of the hitters would be running players again after having their face removed from their head.
I've been a ref for about 5 years. I'm now a collegiate referee. The question of legality depends. At the USAH (USA Hockey) youth level. Now a check must be performed with sole intent to separate the opponent from possession of the puck. The questions you did have. Like elbows. Elbowing is is illegal and is a penalty. Penalties can be a 2 min minor, 10 min misconduct, 2-10's which is just the offending player getting slapped with a misconduct and a secondary player serving the 2 minutes. Then there is 5 min majors. These can be stand alone penalties but is almost 100% unheard of at the youth level as a stand alone. Most times these are accompanied with a game misconduct. Which is an automatic ejection from the game. Severity of the punishment a game misc. has comes down to the age of play. Then there is the heftiest penalty which usually requires a hearing. I've only assessed 2 in my career and both were 4 years ago and 2 years ago. Which is a match penalty. It holds an automatic game ejection, a 5 min major is served by a separate player, and that offending player is suspended for 30 days pending a hearing with the board of player safety. At the NHL level. Elbowing is illegal and can be as low as a 2 min minor or a game misc. The other you asked was about hitting their heads. Which is a huge penalty and at the youth level has an automatic 2-10 penalty attached but most times you will be run up for a 5 and a game. It is assessed under head contact and is determined that it was committed. If the player that performed the check made his principle point of contact the head. Now if they fall and hit their head. That is not a penalty.
"stay in the center of the ice."
My friend - this is a sure way to get absolutely killed. The center ice hits are by far the most violent in the game. And there is a lot of traffic in the center ice moving very, very fast.
Clean hits are considered shoulder to waist all body, no sticks or could be called cross checking, no charging across ice and no leaving the ground
One thing to add about when you can check, is after a player passes the puck, he can only be hit if he has taken less than 3 strides after releasing the puck, which gives the defender a little time to step back from a check. This is because of the speed of the skaters, there is a little time for a defender to make a decision between a legal and illegal check. Also, when you see a game in person, the sound of the checks into the board are really loud. But with all the padding, most of the players don’t feel the hit as hard as it sounds. Our son played hockey from the time he was in kindergarten through college, and still plays in an adult league with some retired AHL players, and it is an exciting game to watch.
Ryan Reeves and Tom Wilson, Alex Ovechkin. three of the hardest hitters and best enforcers. A lot of these are older.
There was a video put up recently, "Jacob Trouba's biggest hits". He's the best modern day checker.
The Beauty of Hockey: The Greatest Game on the Planet. Will give you a great start exploring the sport
Thanks Scott, even the title of this video sounds great, have got it added to our list
Context;
The player being hit must have possession of the puck or be within a few feet of the puck otherwise it will be illegal and a penalty will be called. But if a player has the puck along the boards and his jersey numbers are facing the hitter that is illegal but if his front jersey is facing the hitter that would be legal
there are some good rules videos out there. . but generally you should only be hitting the player with the puck or atleast active within a proximity of the puck. . you cant leave you're feat before making contact and like most sports there's been a push to eliminate headshots. . leading with your elbow is also a no go. . most of the hits your seeing that looks like elbows , if you watch the elbow is tucked in till after contact. . id say that majority of these hits are legal
Thanks for the information Nick. We’ll definitely check out a Rules video next
Hockey has some interesting strategies, like one is Pulling the Goalie. Taking the goalie off the Ice to get a sixth skater to help on the forecheck/attack. That strategy is used in two ways, one is during a Delayed Penalty, the team with the advantage will pull their goalie to bring on an extra attacker with no risk, since the play is whistled dead and penalty is enforced once the penalized team has the Puck. The other is late (usually one minute or less remaining) in the 3rd Period (final third of regulation time, hockey is split in to 3 parts,known as Periods,of 20 minutes each) of a close game, the team down by one will pull their goalie to get their extra attacker as a last chance desperation attempt to tie the game and salvage at least a point by forcing overtime (Hockey's league structure works like Football/soccer, the more points you have, the higher you are on the table, points break down like this, two points for a win,one point for a loss in overtime, no points for loss in regulation,there are no draws in the National Hockey League, i'm not sure if other leagues around the world operate the same way).
Kronwall of Detroit was a beast back in the day, hence the term 'Kronwalled'. My favorite player of all time is Pavel Datsyuk, the Barry Sanders of Hockey.
Have added Datsyuk to our list. We absolutely loved Barry Sanders!
A penalty occurs if you jump up to hit, target the other player's head, use your elbow, or ram someone
into the boards when they are helpless. Rules are not always fairly administered.
Rule number 1: Keep your head UP, scan and anticipate.
Sounds like a good rule that Greg!
You guys need to see the movie “Slap Shot” (1977, Paul Newman).
Thanks, have added to our watch list. We’ve had quite a few films suggested. We’ll look to binge them
Unwritten rule. Get up…quick and never get carried off the ice. If you’re hurt make your way off the ice to the bench. Never let them know you are hurting.
2:17 There are a lot of rules concerning ehat constitutes a legal hit, but here are some of the big ones: you may only do so to dispossess a player of the puck (otherwise this is called for interference,) you must enter a hit on a glide (otherwise this is called for charging,) you cannot hold up your stick horizontally across your chest to brace the impact (otherwise this is called for cross-checking,) and you cannot hit a player into the boards with extreme force, intent to injure, or if the player's head is in a compromising position (otherwise this is called for boarding or roughing.)
Love this! By all means check out more hockey (NHL) stuff! 'Delta Highlights' and 'TSN/Sportsnet top 10s' have a bunch of good stuff... This was kinda lacking in the replay department, good as it was.
When it comes to fights, Tie Domi, Bob Probert and Georges Laraque are popular picks for the 'top dog' in that regard. You definitely want to check out something like 'best nhl fights'...
The aforementioned must have good reels.
Thank you, for these on our list too, more NHL coming soon
delta highlights us great videos
You're right. Due to increasing number of concussions, many of those elbow-leading hit are no longer legal.
This are all shoulder and hip checks for the most part. The rules surrounding hits is that the player you are hitting must either be in control of the puck or just released the puck within two strides of the player making the hit. If you hit a player beyond that point it will be a penalty for either “charging” if it’s post release of the puck or “interference” if the player has yet to receive the puck. Both are 2 minute minor penalties. However “charging” can be upgraded to a 5 minute major. Hits cannot be made above the shoulder or behind the shoulder numbers. Driving a player into the boards with their back to you is illegal and called “Boarding”. This can either be a 2 minute minor penalty or if it is a flagrant disregard of player safety it can be upgraded to a 5 minute major which typically comes with an additional 10 minute “game misconduct” penalty and ejection from the game. All hits to the head are an automatic 5 minute major. Elbows are not allowed to be used when hitting. This is a 2 minute penalty.
Hit #15. As a Leaf fan, I cheered like mad when Phaneuf hit Sauer. That was a huge hit. Looking back, I feel bad. That hit pretty much ended Sauer's career.
Chris Nilan, Bob Probert, Tie Domi, McSorley(gretzky’s protection) Rob Ray, George Laracque are some of the top names that come to mind for “goons”
If you want to talk about fighting in hockey you have to look at Dave "Tiger" Williams. He played for the Maple Leafs and then the Vancouver Canucks back in the 1970's and 1980's. He holds the record for most PIM's and a good portion of that was because of fighting. Fighting back then was way more prevalent than now. Tiger could also score which made him a very formidable opponent. He was a fan favourite in both cities.
Majority of these are clean hits
Good hockey videos to watch are the beauty of hockey (good intro to the sport) and the code (about fighting and why it’s not only accepted, but encouraged at the right times). Plenty of videos about bench clearing brawls, especially stuff from the 70s-80s, like when the bruins went into the stands to beat up a fan. People getting hit through the glass (2 clips of that I think). Philadelphia vs red army team is crazy. There’s also some great examples of individual sacrifice such as a bruins player staying on the ice to help kill a penalty after breaking his leg when blocking a shot, and plenty of other examples of players blocking shots. Also crazy injuries like skate to the neck and tons of KOs.
There’s no fighter who stands out as the uncontested GOAT, but Wayne Gretzky is widely considered the best forward of all time (nickname “the great one”). He wasn’t a fighter though, and that’s about the only valid criticism of his game.
This best hits video is ok but they cut away so fast it’s hard to appreciate the context, or how gnarly some are. Slow motion replay is revealing. Most are legal plays. You can tell if the hitting team touches the puck next but play is allowed to continue (sometimes they stop play anyway though if the player is injured and in a dangerous position). Penalties are delayed until the offending team touches the puck, at which point play is stopped (unless they are scored on in the interim, in which case the penalty is waived). The signal for a delayed penalty is the ref raising his hand (not the linesman, that’s a delayed offside or icing).
Basic concept to hitting is you can hit anyone who has the puck or just let go of it. You’re supposed to avoid targeting the head and hitting unreasonably violently into the boards, which is discretionary. Hitting from behind is usually a penalty, but if they turn at the last second it’s their fault. Charging is tough to understand because your feet move either way, but the idea is don’t accelerate through the hit with multiple running steps (maintaining existing speed is ok).
Most common penalties are tripping and high sticking (stick to head/neck). You can’t crosscheck (using the stick horizontally to deliver a check), but it’s often overlooked when you’re trying to clear a player away from in front of your goalie (they’ll try to screen him or deflect a shot in).
The rules of hockey are excellent. It’s all about rewarding the team that forces play. The ref never gives a team possession, they simply drop the puck between two opposing players after every stoppage (called a faceoff). You’re also allowed to change players on the fly (without a whistle) and pull your goalie (for an extra skater). Things like that make the game truly unique.
Hockey is the only sport where you’ll hear the commentators say “he did the right thing” when referring to a player who just got in a fight (watch the code and you’ll get it). They also call the fight in play by play fashion which is hysterical when you think about it. But fighting is just the cherry on top of what is the greatest sport on earth.
I hope you enjoy your foray into the NHL.
Wow, thank you Jeffrey. Had a great read through this. The videos I’ve got added to our list too. Thanks again for the great context
Many consider the hardest hit of all time to be where Larry Robinson destroyed Gary Dornhoffer in the mid 70s. The game was temporarily halted as the boards had been shifted about an inch. The hit is on RUclips, have a look for yourself.
0:28 Strictly speaking, this is a Canadian sport that is also played in the U.S.
3/23/23
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Hey dudes. I am a life long hockey player and Canadian from Ottawa. Everyone of the hits ***seemed*** legal except maybe a charging and or the one where they are away from the boards but get hit into the boards from a meter or so, you should watch reffs miced up it kind of explains stuff. .
The number 1 must watch hockey video is The Brawl In Hockey Town. Hands down.. there is no close 2nd
Hockey is a Canadian gift to the world
you should watch vids of when the goalies fight and/or when the goalies are pissed. you guys would love those
Thanks Trace. Added to our list! Sounds great
@@DNReacts ruclips.net/video/lP4ekB0jx5w/видео.html here is a link just incase you both decide to go through with it
The middle of the ice is more dangerous than the boards. Especially if you're caught with your head down