From: allan@cs.UAlberta.CA (Allan Sullivan)
Subject: Re: What the world needs now is an AMERICAN TV CONTRACT.
Organization: University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1992 05:50:14 GMT

ARBOGASTW@vaxb.gbus.virginia.edu (Warren Arbogast) writes:

>>You are under the assumption that what is preventing the NHL from getting
>>a long term contract is because of the fighting in the sport, and that
>>once fighting is removed it will become popular.

>As an advocate of the league controlling fighting, I contend that if the NHL 
>treated fighting like other sports do (ejecting players when it gets out of 
>hand and eliminating the impression that the league condones "goons" and 
>their "honor codes"), the NHL would have a CHANCE to get an AMERICAN TV 
>contract that would provide the league the dollars both players and owners 
>see being made in other sports.

The optimum word here is CHANCE. What if the CHANCE doesn't work?
You've changed the game, reduced the intensity, made it less enjoyable
for the current market, probably increased the incidence of stick
violations, and have nothing to show for it.

Do you really think it would have a better chance? I don't think so.
The people in the media who make this claim seem not to care too much
about hockey. (They're the type of people who put hockey news on the
back page of the sports section in places like LA.)

Most people who don't like the fighting in hockey wouldn't watch
it even if there was no fighting.

>But it doesn't stop there.  The NHL does a woeful job of marketing it's game 
>and it's stars.  It needs to control fighting and eliminate the perception 
>that it not only tolerates but encourages fighting AND market itself and 
>it's stars.

What next, remove hitting and checking from the game because people see
that part of the game as too rough?  Hey, why don't you get rid of
sticks and pucks too, since these can hurt people.

>Fine, don't change the game because fans in hockey cities in Canada and the 
>US like it the way it is.  But don't strike for higher salaries when wages 
>have gone up so dramatically the past two years and fight over the bus fair 
>made off of hockey cards.  Sure, the players are right about owning their 
>faces AND there is money to be made, but it would be a lot bigger pile if 
>the league and the players marketed itself.  And fighting does nothing to 
>help their cause.

Marketing helps. Fighting is neutral.

>I've heard plenty of arguments to leave the game alone because people like 
>it the way it is. This is usually followed by arguments that Ziegler and the 
>owners are shortsighted money hounds who should change their game. This 
>doesn't make sense. Aren't fans who don't want a change being a little 
>shortsighted?

I never said hockey shouldn't change. There are LOTS of things 
the NHL should change. I'm saying that banning fighting
would not help the game and may hurt it.

P.S. How come you have not come up with a list of players injured
     by fighting, like I challenged?

P.P.S. Actually, I find the notion of banning fighting from hockey
       to get a TV contract insulting. We in Canada have been watching
       hockey on CBC for years. Not everyone likes the fighting, but
       we still watch it. When you say "Get rid of fighting", you
       must have the impression that the millions of Hockey
       Night in Canada fans are morons or something. ("Hey,
       those stupid Canadians don't know what's good for them.")


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   \  \                   |Allan Sullivan (allan@cs.ualberta.ca)
    \  \                  |Department of Computing Science,
     \  \_______          |University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
      \    ###  \     _   |---------------------------------------------------
       \___###___\   (_)  |My opinions are mine and mine alone.
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"It is amazing how much can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the
 credit..."          - U. of A. Golden Bears Hockey Motto (C. Drake)
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