It's no secret, I'm all for it. i wa sin Houston a few weeks ago for an Aeros game. I also see about 36 games live while working for a local team. Most hockey players are pretty tough, but I have seen a few guys sit out with some less than painful injuries. For the most part though, I've seen guys get teeth knocked out getting hit by the puck take 1 shift off and come right back in. Another thing is that the NHL and minor league hockey are almost two copletely different animals. The NHL has way fewer fights than the minors and offensive players play more of a finesse game.The defensemen are usually strong checkers nad get into an occasional scrap. The AHL teams (Aeros) fight a little more often but still play a lot of finesse games. Below AHL level though, you see probably almost a fight a game if not more. Some nights I think I have fallen into a recreation of Slapshot. Most NHL players don't want to risk injury getting into a fight, being injured can cost big money. In the low minors though those guys get paid peanuts so they'll fight for just about any reason as long as it gets them noticed. There are several guys that I've seen play that can barely skate, but found out later that they competed in gold gloves boxing competitions. I have seen a couple of fights where guys got knocked smooth out. Very rarely do you see those type of altercations in the NHL. I'd love to see the Pens, or another NHL team in Houston. If for nothing more than it would give me a better chance to complete the grand slam of seeing live pro championship games.
