Men Who Love Goons...

Saw this posted on James Mirtle's blog today.

Even if you're not a hockey fan, everyone still likes a good tilt.

This piece isn't as much about the fights and the fighters but the fans obsessed with them.

A hockey fan watches a fight and cheers, and maybe gets another beer. A hockey fight fan watches 50 fights in a row on DVD, then goes online to argue about them.

We forget that before Youtube, watching a fight in an AHL/ECHL game was a little difficult.

Great piece.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=goons

On the screen is a brawl. A bench-clearer, the kind hockey doesn't make anymore. Rangers versus Flyers, late 1970s. Frank Beaton and Mel Bridgeman go toe-to-toe. "Great stuff," Nicky V. says. "If these guys took their pants off, their balls would fall to the floor."

 

Jesus, Nasty Mirasty has a cult following?

Sun shines on a dog's ass some days.

 

I know a guy who played in the minors for Chris Nilan. He said when Nilan wasn't scaring the hell out of opposing coaches, he'd show videos of his fights on the bus. My guy can't be 100% certain, but he didn't think he saw the same fight twice.

 

You covered him?

 

I remember the one year that Nilan was put in the All-Star Game in the hope that there would be at least one hit. Didn't happen, though.

 

I think Roenick has the only recorded hit in NHL All-Star history.

 

He played for Try Shitty one season. He would have been in Kam-hole two or three times ... his reputation preceded him. Didn't see him much the other years, since he was in the Eastern Conference.

We got Colton Orr one-third of the way into that season.

Good times ... good times.

 

Baron, your larger point is excellent, but I seem to recall Nilan was in the All-Star game because back then, the coaches of the respective All-Star teams got to add some of their guys, as a reward. Mike Milbury, Nilan's coach in Boston, wanted to make triple-sure everybody knew what an incredible douche he was, so he put Chris Nilan on the All-Star roster.

 

That was a great read.

 

Back when I was covering hockey in the 70s and 80s, in Philly the fans could walk right in front of the press box. Every time I was there, this one guy would always come up to where the visiting writers sat. He had cut out from the newspaper the hockey summaries from my team's games over the past few weeks. He underlined the fighting penalties. He wanted to know who won the fight.

 

Terrific piece by Patrick Hruby. The type of piece that can both draw in the hardcore puckhead and educate the more casual fan.

Somewhere, Bobby Clarke is writing down names to make sure his organization gets every one of these guys ...

 

You're right, Sam. I read this piece before going to work and actually learned something about the game from it. Not every piece can claim that.