If you haven't read the article "Bruins not so Big and Bad anymore: Lack of fight could be part of Black 'n' Gold's struggles" by Karen Guregian on BostonHerald.com yet make sure to read it, especially if you're a Bruins fan. The article is right on in my opinion. The Bruins haven't been standing up for each other and they're not playing hockey the way it's suppose to be played. But is it because of the new rules? I think it somewhat is, but there are other teams that play hockey the way it is suppose to be played, such as the Anaheim Ducks.From the article a quote from Bruins power forward Hall of Famer Cam Neely:
"Contact is part of hockey. You want emotion. You want guys sticking up for each other. The thing I loved about hockey is something Harry (Sinden) used to say. There's no out of bounds. There are unwritten rules and codes that we all lived by. We'd police ourselves. Now if you touch someone, you're in the box. It's not the game fans grew up watching, especially the ones around here."
Cam Neely is right on and even Chris Nilan had this to say:
"I think a lot has to do with the league and the way it is now. Guys don't want to go out there and do something and then have the league suspend them. Say someone comes to his rescue and does something. Then the league suspends that guy for 10 games. Now the guy has to pay the fine out of his salary. Who wants to lose all that money protecting some kid? Who wants to take that chance, step over the line to protect a teammate, then lose a half-million dollars? Who's going to pay him back? The team? The guy he stuck up for?"
Even Kevin Stevens had these comments:
"It's an unwritten rule. You don't sit there and tell someone they have to do it or don't have to do it. It just happens. You don't think about it. You even have guys who don't fight, do it to stick up for a teammate. I've seen a lot of guys who don't fight that often jump in there. They'll take a beating, but they'll do it for the team. I think you have to do it."
And the best quotes came from everyone's favorite Don Cherry. I agree 100% with Don Cherry. We need hockey back to the way it once was. A few Don Cherry quotes from the article:
"I know the new NHL is a kinder NHL, but you still have to have someone protecting your star players in the lineup. Teams that are pushed around aren't going to win the Stanley Cup. Look at Anaheim. They lead the league in fights. Brian Burke has put together a terrific team. They have balance. They're smoking everyone. I just know this. There was a time when everyone was terrified of the black uniform. Sometimes, we'd lose a game, but because we'd win five fights, we'd get a standing ovation walking out of the building. Fans loved us because we were the toughest team out there. Sweetheart hockey is not the Bruins. In Boston, they've got to be the toughest. When you put that black sweater on, you can't play sweetheart hockey. If you don't stick up for each other, you're not going anywhere."
Those were some great quotes from Don Cherry. I wish Don Cherry was the Bruins coach once again or even the Bruins GM. Current Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli doesn't quite get it. A quote from Chiarelli:
"Do we need to get tougher? Yes, we do. We need more team toughness, but we have to be smart about it. Do we need an enforcer? No. We just have to play mentally tougher and physically tougher."
And two more great quotes from legendary Don Cherry:
"There's an awful lot of college GMs in the game now who were not part of the game then. They don't appreciate that game. I don't think we're talking about having guys who just sit on the bench and you only put them out on the ice to fight like an animal. That's not hockey. When I coached those Bruins teams with John Wensink and Stan Jonathan and Wayne Cashman, we had 11 guys who had 20 or more goals. They could play and fight. The league is saying no more, but the bottom line is, the fans love it. Who is it that doesn't like it?"
I think we all know that Gary Bettman doesn't like fighting. He's one of the problems with the NHL and it's not just about fighting in hockey, it's more of marketing hockey with him and the bad job he has done. Anyone remember the NHL was once on ESPN. Not anymore though as the NHL has VS. That's a whole other story though for another time.
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