Andrew Ference talks about his fight with Sydney Crosby

Over at ESPN.com, David Amber had an interview with Bruins' defenseman Andrew Ference and Ference had some interesting comments about Sydney Crosby.

From the interview:

Q: Last month you fought Sidney Crosby in his first NHL fight. How did that fight start?

A: I wish it was a better fight, since I get to talk about it so much. It started like any other fight. I finished my check on him in the corner and then he punched me and I punched him back, then we fought. I was surprised it was his first fight, because I've seen him punch guys before after he gets hit. I figured someone else would have grabbed him and started a fight. It would have been a fight no matter who it was because that's the way hockey is supposed to be -- if you give a guy a shot in the face, you better be willing to drop the gloves to follow up with it.

Q: What kind of reaction did you get from friends, fans and the media after fighting with arguably the game's biggest star?

A: My sister called me, she's a teacher in Alberta, she told me she has been getting a hard time from her students [laughs]. My friends kind of laughed and said they wished it was a little longer, they wanted more punches thrown. Guys on the team have thought it was funny how much exposure it got, especially since they think it was the worst fight I have had this year.

Q: But can you really win a fight like that? Let's say you broke his jaw or gave him a concussion. Then you're known as the guy who injured Sidney Crosby. Isn't it a losing battle for you?

A: [Laughs.] if I did that, I would have to fight Georges Laraque every time we played Pittsburgh. I wouldn't want that [laughs].

Q: Did Laraque or any of the other Pens have words for you after you fought Crosby?

A: No, nobody said anything. That's the thing, nobody should have to say anything, the kid's not little. He's bigger than I am.

Q: Crosby cut you during the fight. How good a fighter is he?

A: No, his visor cut me. He came up and his visor cut the top of my head. Go back to that Jarome question. Jarome in my books is a better hockey player than Crosby because he does those things. He will fight, he will lay his body on the line and take the hit and not complain if someone hits him and stuff like that. The superstars of the league should have to do that because they're hockey players, they're not ice-skating princesses. Hockey is an emotional game, you have to stand up for yourself. You have to stand up for your actions. If you punch somebody in the face, then you should fight, that's the way hockey is suppose to be.

Q: So are you saying Crosby is a little soft?

A: Well, he's not Jarome.

I think all of Ference's comments here are all true.