For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Just thought I'd share with the Ice Hockey guys/gals on here this video of big hits compilation - I was pretty entertained.

Reminds us what an awesome sport it is - very much under-appreciated in the States, let alone here. Completely owns American 'football' imo. It's just too bad we don't have the climate in this country for the sport to be part of school. Ah well.

(apologies in advance for the choice of music by who ever made this).

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

How is that even legal? :P

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Well I'd say a number of those probably aren't. Checking is the term used for various defensive techniques in ice hockey, and there are a large variety of checks - shoulder checks (elbows not allowed), body checks etc.

Within the category of checks, cross checking (checking with the stick and fully extended arms)checking from behind, charging and boarding (checking a player that results in them being thrown violently into the boards) are all illegal. Of course just like any sport, what is written down in the rule book can and does get bent, depending on ref's discretion, the way the sport evolves and so on.

The great thing about ice hockey is that even this is legal

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Fights are often instigated by a team who are losing to try and raise team morale. It certainly gets the crowd going!

We were at a Hitman game once and the first fight was three second into the game. They dropped their gloves as soon as the puck hit the ice.

Players are certainly tough. I've seen players finish a game with broken ankles and wrists. Players are taken off the ice, covered in blood, they stitch them up and then send them back out. One guy lost a couple of teeth and after the game they found them buried in the roof of his mouth!

I'm sure there is probably a you tube video of one incident where a player (Zednik) had his throat slashed by another players skate. He lost a huge amount of blood in seconds and it was only the fact that one of the medical staff from the other team had army field training that saved him. The guy apparently reached into the players throat to find the severed artery and held onto it until emergency services arrived. The player was back on the ice within a couple of week (wearing a neck guard!)

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Its funny when you see footballers rolling around on the ground because they got flicked in the face by a stray hand .Maybe they should have a go at this !!

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

yeh players are very tough. There are actually players on each team whose playing abilites aint all that, but they're good at fighting, and serve that purpose well. They're known as enforcers, and when you get two, toe to toe it's usually gonna be a big one.

Padding or no padding, these players can skate up to 20mph, some have been clocked at 30mph. Imagine getting a 6"4 beast with full gear charging at you at those speeds. Or imagine hitting the boards at those speeds - not to mention the fact this is on ice, not cushiony grass. You've gotta be pretty brave just to get out there on the ice rink.

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Tell me about it! my son is 17, 6'-1" and 190lbs. Even just playing pond hockey with him amd his mates is painful, no allowance for us old guys, and yes the ice is hard!

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Pond hockey?

Hes only 1" taller than me, and I outweigh him by 36 pounds :)

Most of thats through too much beer though :)

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

Pond Hockey - Most communities here have a lake in the centre, which is used for boating and fishing in the summer. In the winter once there is 10-12" of ice on it, they set out floodlit hockey rinks and you turn up for games with whoever's there. They also ice fish in the middle - drill a hole, dangle a line down, sit on a stool and wait - I dont get it?

Re: For Ice Hockey fans!
 

that sounds awesome. I need to live in Canada!