Time for another clip of the week.
There wasn't a whole lot to pick from this week. I guess it was a boring week.
I did manage to come across a quick clip showing a minor league baseball game brawl last week. This drives me crazy every time I see stuff like this.
People are always talking about fighting in hockey and how bad it is but when was the last time you saw a bench clearing brawl. They rarely happen in a hockey game at any level.
However, it doesn't matter at what level of play in baseball, a fight involves the benches clearing every time. Well, maybe this incident will finally bring about some changes...but I doubt it.
Having said that, I still enjoy seeing the odd hockey brawl from time to time.
Showing posts with label Brawl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brawl. Show all posts
Monday, July 28, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Clip of the Week - May 12/08
Love 'em or hate 'em, fights in hockey are part of the game and unless something drastic happens in the future, they'll always be a part of the game to some extent.
The thing about hockey fights is usually they only involve two players, one from each team. Every so often you get "line brawls" where all five players on each team on the ice will square off with some punches thrown and like most hockey fights, nobody gets injured other than maybe a bloody or broken nose. And on rare occasions the goalies will get into the action also.
The one thing you rarely see in the NHL anymore are bench clearing brawls when every player on both teams flood the ice and start fighting. I'd be lying if I said I'm glad we don't see them anymore as I think every now and then it would be OK if they happened but nobody wants to see them all the time. But sometimes the tensions run high and tempers boil over and they erupt into a real donnybrook.
On the other hand, bench clearing brawls in baseball look ridiculous. Usually they happen when a pitcher throws at a batter, the batter charges the mound and then everyone runs onto the field and stands around looking stupid. Most of the time there are only a few punches tossed so the whole thing is asinine.
I think baseball should be like hockey and if anyone leaves the bench, they should be fined or suspended and that might cut down on incidences of this type.
While benches clear all the time in baseball, I can't recall the last time it happened in an NHL game. Their have been some classics like the Montreal and Quebec dust-ups of days gone by but the most recent one I could locate was from the 1986-87 season where during the game teams left the bench. That game involved the Bruins and Nordiques and the clip is below.
The most recent baseball dance happened just this past week and of course it was just another waste of time. Seattle's Richie Sexson charged the mound after nearly being beaned in the head...or so he felt. I honestly don't think it was that bad but then again, I wasn't the one being thrown at.
Baseball Dust-up
Bruins & Nordiques Clear The Benches
The thing about hockey fights is usually they only involve two players, one from each team. Every so often you get "line brawls" where all five players on each team on the ice will square off with some punches thrown and like most hockey fights, nobody gets injured other than maybe a bloody or broken nose. And on rare occasions the goalies will get into the action also.
The one thing you rarely see in the NHL anymore are bench clearing brawls when every player on both teams flood the ice and start fighting. I'd be lying if I said I'm glad we don't see them anymore as I think every now and then it would be OK if they happened but nobody wants to see them all the time. But sometimes the tensions run high and tempers boil over and they erupt into a real donnybrook.
On the other hand, bench clearing brawls in baseball look ridiculous. Usually they happen when a pitcher throws at a batter, the batter charges the mound and then everyone runs onto the field and stands around looking stupid. Most of the time there are only a few punches tossed so the whole thing is asinine.
I think baseball should be like hockey and if anyone leaves the bench, they should be fined or suspended and that might cut down on incidences of this type.
While benches clear all the time in baseball, I can't recall the last time it happened in an NHL game. Their have been some classics like the Montreal and Quebec dust-ups of days gone by but the most recent one I could locate was from the 1986-87 season where during the game teams left the bench. That game involved the Bruins and Nordiques and the clip is below.
The most recent baseball dance happened just this past week and of course it was just another waste of time. Seattle's Richie Sexson charged the mound after nearly being beaned in the head...or so he felt. I honestly don't think it was that bad but then again, I wasn't the one being thrown at.
Baseball Dust-up
Bruins & Nordiques Clear The Benches
Monday, March 24, 2008
Clip of the Week - March 24/08
There's been a lot of talk about hockey fights this past weekend mainly due to the line brawl in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
In that game the players on the ice squared off and eventually Patrick Roy's son, who plays net, went after the other goalie who wanted no part of it. To me this is a joke. If the guy doesn't want to fight then be a man and respect that. There was nothing to be gained by Roy to force the issue and ultimately he pummeled the poor kid into submission. I'll share with you a clip of that fight to prove my point. It should never have happened and Roy should be suspended. By the way, Patrick Roy was one of my all time favourite NHL players.
That isn't to say I'm against fighting in hockey. In fact, I'm all for it, provided the combatants are both willing and the situation warrants it.
Such was the case on Saturday night when Chris Simon & Jim Vandermeer went toe to toe during a very spirited bout between the two NHL tough guys. They were both willing and actually discussed it prior to the puck drop and resumption of play. I believe fighting has its place in the game and can be a valuable tool to allow the players to police the game themselves and make other players accountable for their actions. Some of the more recent rule changes have ruined the game in many ways.
I recently watched an old Canada Cup game and it was some of the best hockey I can ever recall watching. But if they were using today's rules, the game would have been non-stop penalties for hooking, clutching and grabbing and slashing. I miss the good 'ol days.
Chris Simon & Jim Vandermeer
Johnathon Roy & Bobby Nadeau
In that game the players on the ice squared off and eventually Patrick Roy's son, who plays net, went after the other goalie who wanted no part of it. To me this is a joke. If the guy doesn't want to fight then be a man and respect that. There was nothing to be gained by Roy to force the issue and ultimately he pummeled the poor kid into submission. I'll share with you a clip of that fight to prove my point. It should never have happened and Roy should be suspended. By the way, Patrick Roy was one of my all time favourite NHL players.
That isn't to say I'm against fighting in hockey. In fact, I'm all for it, provided the combatants are both willing and the situation warrants it.
Such was the case on Saturday night when Chris Simon & Jim Vandermeer went toe to toe during a very spirited bout between the two NHL tough guys. They were both willing and actually discussed it prior to the puck drop and resumption of play. I believe fighting has its place in the game and can be a valuable tool to allow the players to police the game themselves and make other players accountable for their actions. Some of the more recent rule changes have ruined the game in many ways.
I recently watched an old Canada Cup game and it was some of the best hockey I can ever recall watching. But if they were using today's rules, the game would have been non-stop penalties for hooking, clutching and grabbing and slashing. I miss the good 'ol days.
Chris Simon & Jim Vandermeer
Johnathon Roy & Bobby Nadeau
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Favourite Sports Memories
Welcome to part two of my series on sports. Actually I didn't plan this but I was reading the Toronto Sun today and over the next few days their reporters or writing about their favourite moment in sports history from their perspective. Obviously they won't be talking about the 1906 World Series or the Montreal Maroons Hockey team but instead they'll discuss a sporting event they actually witnessed.
So along the same lines, I've decided to post a few of my favourite sporting moments in the last 40 years of my life. OK, I'm 39, but who's counting. I've also included plenty of video evidence to help you enjoy the moments again. Hopefully the links don't disappear.
In no particular order, here we go...
1993 Stanley Cup Final
I can remember it as if it was yesterday as the Montreal Canadians (my team of course) defeated the L.A. Kings in five games to win their 24th Stanley Cup. Sadly they haven't won again since then but I've been fortunate enough to see the "Habs" win ten Stanley Cups in my lifetime. I don't recall ever seeing the Leafs win one however.
1992 Blue Jays Win World Series
As a fan of the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team since they were born in 1977 I was thrilled to watch as the Jays won for the first time. The 1992 World Series was the first Series ever played outside of the United States of America. It pitted the American League champion Toronto Blue Jays against the National League champion Atlanta Braves. Toronto defeated Atlanta, 4 games to 2, marking the first time a non-United States based team ever won the World Series.
You may remember a faux pas occurred when a United States Marine Corps colour guard erroneously displayed the Canadian flag upside down during the opening ceremony of the second game. In the end it didn't matter as Toronto beat the tomahawk chopping Braves.
I'll always remember the thrilling 11th inning win in game six for Toronto. Otis Nixon bunted the ball to Jays reliever Mike Timlin who turned and tossed the ball to Joe Carter at first base to earn the first World Series for Canada.
1993 Blue Jays Repeat
The defending champion Toronto Blue Jays of the American League against the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies. With Toronto ahead 3 games to 2 in the series, Joe Carter hit a three-run game-winning home run in the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 6 to win the series for Toronto, giving them their second consecutive championship (the first repeaters since the 1977-78 Yankees).
This was only the second Series concluded by such a home run (the first was in the 1960 World Series on a Bill Mazeroski home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates), and the first such occasion where a come-from-behind walk-off home run won a World Series.
I was in Toronto on Younge Street watching the game on the big screen at th HMV store and it was pandemonium when the game ended. I never kissed so many girls I'd never met before in my life. It was awesome...and a little scary.
1987 Canada Cup - Game 3
This was simply the best series of hockey I have ever seen in my life.
The final three-game series of this tournament between Canada and the USSR is considered by many to be the best exhibition of hockey in history. The tournament also was the first time ever that the two most dominant players of the last quarter century, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, played on the same forward unit, and as expected dazzled fans with electrifying goals.
With the series tied 1-1, the Soviets stunned all of Canada by scoring three times in the first eight minutes to take a 3-0 lead in Game 3. Canada's grinders took over after that (particularly Rick Tocchet, Brent Sutter, and Dale Hawerchuk), and pulled Canada into a 5-4 lead after two periods. The Soviets tied it back up in the third and the game looked like it would head to overtime again. But late in the third period, Canada coach Mike Keenan sent the Gretzky-Lemieux-Hawerchuk line out to play, with a faceoff in Canada's end.
The rest is history as Hawerchuk tripped up Vyacheslav Bykov and Gretzky, Lemieux and Larry Murphy rushed down the ice on a three-on-one. Once again, Gretzky set up Lemieux, who fired a shot over the glove of goaltender Sergei Mylnikov with 1:26 remaining. The Gretzky to Lemieux play is one of the most memorable plays in Canadian hockey history.
Canada Wins 4x100 Relay in Atlanta
It was the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. My dad and I were in Toronto to watch a Jays game with some American friends who were up camping. After the game ended and everyone was making their way from their seats, all of a sudden the Jumbotron screen came alive just in time with the start of the race.
Donovan Bailey teamed up with fellow sprinters Bruny Surin, Glenroy Gilbert and Robert Esmie to defeat a faltering American team in the 4x100 metre relay. The year before the Olympic final, the Canadian foursome captured the title at the world track and field championships. But some commented that the absence of the United States left some lingering doubt as to how good the Canadians really were.
In Atlanta, their victory confirmed their status as the champions. The cheering in the dome was deafening as everyone was cheering wildly. Our American friends didn't feel too welcome with the anti-American comments being thrown around following the win.
1972 Summit Series
My memories of this series are dim at best as I was only four years old but it still remains one of the greatest sports moments ever and if you're Canadian then you know all about it. Canada needed a in win in game eight of the series in Russia to claim victory after a slow start. In the end they did just that thanks to a late goal by Paul Henderson.
1988 World Series - Game One
I'll be honest...I don't remember much about this series other than the fact that the L.A. Dodgers went on to upset the Oakland Athletics. However, one of the most amazing moments in baseball history took place in the bottom of the 9th in game one when an injured Kirk Gibson came off the bench to pinch hit and hit an impossible homerun to take the lead in the series.
To see Gibson hobble around the bases was unforgettable and to see Manager Tommy Lasorda jumping up and down like a little kid reminded us all that baseball is still just a game.
Red Army versus Montreal - December 31, 1975
The game showcased two distinct systems: not capitalism versus communism, but the determined, linear play of a Montreal team on the cusp of a dynasty versus the swooping, circular style of the Soviets -- the one now prevalent in the NHL.
The Canadiens outshot the Red Army 38-13, but Boris Aleksandrov beat Montreal goalie Ken Dryden on a three-on-one late in the third period to secure the tie. After the game Montreal defenseman Serge Savard said, "God was Russian tonight." It was a game for the ages.
1987 World Junior Hockey Championships
The "Punch-up in Piestany" erupted halfway through the final game of the 1987 world junior hockey championship. Canada was assured a medal, and would have moved ahead of Finland for the gold if they had beaten the Soviets by at least five goals.
The blow-up began as a fight between Pavel Kostichkin and Theoren Fleury. Four Soviet players left their bench to join the brawl, and then all the players on both teams swarmed onto the ice. I was never so proud as I was to see our boys stand up to the Russians and in the end...kick their Commie asses.
1984 Adams Division Finals - Game 6
Montreal Canadiens vs. Quebec Nordiques - Known as "Good Friday brawl/the battle of Quebec" this is possibly the most famous game ever played between the Montreal Canadiens and the Quebec Nordiques. A bench clearing brawl erupts and during the brawl Louie Slegr KO's Jean Hamel and later Dale Hunter goes ballistic. I really miss this old rivalry.
2002 Winter Olympics - Canadian Gold
It had been a long time since Canada had won a Gold Medal in Men's Hockey at the Winter Olympics and this time they were on a mission that nobody was going to stop. The final game was an awesome match-up with Team U.S.A. and was the perfect finish.
Sadly my memories of this game are mostly from video tape and from what I saw at the airport. I was flying home from a cruise of the Caribbean and we had left New Orleans and landed in Houston to catch our connecting flight. We didn't have a lot of time but we did see a bit of the game before we had to board the next flight. At that point the game was still close. We had asked the Captain to give us updates which he really never did until the game was over and when he announced that Canada had won...the plane erupted in cheers and applause by the Canadian passengers...mostly in our group.
Upon our arrival in Toronto there were people waving flags and blowing their car horns in celebration. Thankfully my parents taped the game for me and I was able to watch it once I got home. Knowing the outcome certainly made it easier on the nerves to watch. It was an amazing game even on tape.
And so that's a list of my favourite Sports Moments. I'm sure I've missed a lot of others but perhaps I can save those for another day. If you can think of any, please feel free to let me know by leaving a comment.
So along the same lines, I've decided to post a few of my favourite sporting moments in the last 40 years of my life. OK, I'm 39, but who's counting. I've also included plenty of video evidence to help you enjoy the moments again. Hopefully the links don't disappear.
In no particular order, here we go...
1993 Stanley Cup Final
I can remember it as if it was yesterday as the Montreal Canadians (my team of course) defeated the L.A. Kings in five games to win their 24th Stanley Cup. Sadly they haven't won again since then but I've been fortunate enough to see the "Habs" win ten Stanley Cups in my lifetime. I don't recall ever seeing the Leafs win one however.
1992 Blue Jays Win World Series
As a fan of the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team since they were born in 1977 I was thrilled to watch as the Jays won for the first time. The 1992 World Series was the first Series ever played outside of the United States of America. It pitted the American League champion Toronto Blue Jays against the National League champion Atlanta Braves. Toronto defeated Atlanta, 4 games to 2, marking the first time a non-United States based team ever won the World Series.
You may remember a faux pas occurred when a United States Marine Corps colour guard erroneously displayed the Canadian flag upside down during the opening ceremony of the second game. In the end it didn't matter as Toronto beat the tomahawk chopping Braves.
I'll always remember the thrilling 11th inning win in game six for Toronto. Otis Nixon bunted the ball to Jays reliever Mike Timlin who turned and tossed the ball to Joe Carter at first base to earn the first World Series for Canada.
1993 Blue Jays Repeat
The defending champion Toronto Blue Jays of the American League against the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies. With Toronto ahead 3 games to 2 in the series, Joe Carter hit a three-run game-winning home run in the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 6 to win the series for Toronto, giving them their second consecutive championship (the first repeaters since the 1977-78 Yankees).
This was only the second Series concluded by such a home run (the first was in the 1960 World Series on a Bill Mazeroski home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates), and the first such occasion where a come-from-behind walk-off home run won a World Series.
I was in Toronto on Younge Street watching the game on the big screen at th HMV store and it was pandemonium when the game ended. I never kissed so many girls I'd never met before in my life. It was awesome...and a little scary.
1987 Canada Cup - Game 3
This was simply the best series of hockey I have ever seen in my life.
The final three-game series of this tournament between Canada and the USSR is considered by many to be the best exhibition of hockey in history. The tournament also was the first time ever that the two most dominant players of the last quarter century, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, played on the same forward unit, and as expected dazzled fans with electrifying goals.
With the series tied 1-1, the Soviets stunned all of Canada by scoring three times in the first eight minutes to take a 3-0 lead in Game 3. Canada's grinders took over after that (particularly Rick Tocchet, Brent Sutter, and Dale Hawerchuk), and pulled Canada into a 5-4 lead after two periods. The Soviets tied it back up in the third and the game looked like it would head to overtime again. But late in the third period, Canada coach Mike Keenan sent the Gretzky-Lemieux-Hawerchuk line out to play, with a faceoff in Canada's end.
The rest is history as Hawerchuk tripped up Vyacheslav Bykov and Gretzky, Lemieux and Larry Murphy rushed down the ice on a three-on-one. Once again, Gretzky set up Lemieux, who fired a shot over the glove of goaltender Sergei Mylnikov with 1:26 remaining. The Gretzky to Lemieux play is one of the most memorable plays in Canadian hockey history.
Canada Wins 4x100 Relay in Atlanta
It was the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. My dad and I were in Toronto to watch a Jays game with some American friends who were up camping. After the game ended and everyone was making their way from their seats, all of a sudden the Jumbotron screen came alive just in time with the start of the race.
Donovan Bailey teamed up with fellow sprinters Bruny Surin, Glenroy Gilbert and Robert Esmie to defeat a faltering American team in the 4x100 metre relay. The year before the Olympic final, the Canadian foursome captured the title at the world track and field championships. But some commented that the absence of the United States left some lingering doubt as to how good the Canadians really were.
In Atlanta, their victory confirmed their status as the champions. The cheering in the dome was deafening as everyone was cheering wildly. Our American friends didn't feel too welcome with the anti-American comments being thrown around following the win.
1972 Summit Series
My memories of this series are dim at best as I was only four years old but it still remains one of the greatest sports moments ever and if you're Canadian then you know all about it. Canada needed a in win in game eight of the series in Russia to claim victory after a slow start. In the end they did just that thanks to a late goal by Paul Henderson.
1988 World Series - Game One
I'll be honest...I don't remember much about this series other than the fact that the L.A. Dodgers went on to upset the Oakland Athletics. However, one of the most amazing moments in baseball history took place in the bottom of the 9th in game one when an injured Kirk Gibson came off the bench to pinch hit and hit an impossible homerun to take the lead in the series.
To see Gibson hobble around the bases was unforgettable and to see Manager Tommy Lasorda jumping up and down like a little kid reminded us all that baseball is still just a game.
Red Army versus Montreal - December 31, 1975
The game showcased two distinct systems: not capitalism versus communism, but the determined, linear play of a Montreal team on the cusp of a dynasty versus the swooping, circular style of the Soviets -- the one now prevalent in the NHL.
The Canadiens outshot the Red Army 38-13, but Boris Aleksandrov beat Montreal goalie Ken Dryden on a three-on-one late in the third period to secure the tie. After the game Montreal defenseman Serge Savard said, "God was Russian tonight." It was a game for the ages.
1987 World Junior Hockey Championships
The "Punch-up in Piestany" erupted halfway through the final game of the 1987 world junior hockey championship. Canada was assured a medal, and would have moved ahead of Finland for the gold if they had beaten the Soviets by at least five goals.
The blow-up began as a fight between Pavel Kostichkin and Theoren Fleury. Four Soviet players left their bench to join the brawl, and then all the players on both teams swarmed onto the ice. I was never so proud as I was to see our boys stand up to the Russians and in the end...kick their Commie asses.
1984 Adams Division Finals - Game 6
Montreal Canadiens vs. Quebec Nordiques - Known as "Good Friday brawl/the battle of Quebec" this is possibly the most famous game ever played between the Montreal Canadiens and the Quebec Nordiques. A bench clearing brawl erupts and during the brawl Louie Slegr KO's Jean Hamel and later Dale Hunter goes ballistic. I really miss this old rivalry.
2002 Winter Olympics - Canadian Gold
It had been a long time since Canada had won a Gold Medal in Men's Hockey at the Winter Olympics and this time they were on a mission that nobody was going to stop. The final game was an awesome match-up with Team U.S.A. and was the perfect finish.
Sadly my memories of this game are mostly from video tape and from what I saw at the airport. I was flying home from a cruise of the Caribbean and we had left New Orleans and landed in Houston to catch our connecting flight. We didn't have a lot of time but we did see a bit of the game before we had to board the next flight. At that point the game was still close. We had asked the Captain to give us updates which he really never did until the game was over and when he announced that Canada had won...the plane erupted in cheers and applause by the Canadian passengers...mostly in our group.
Upon our arrival in Toronto there were people waving flags and blowing their car horns in celebration. Thankfully my parents taped the game for me and I was able to watch it once I got home. Knowing the outcome certainly made it easier on the nerves to watch. It was an amazing game even on tape.
And so that's a list of my favourite Sports Moments. I'm sure I've missed a lot of others but perhaps I can save those for another day. If you can think of any, please feel free to let me know by leaving a comment.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)