Perhaps only in hockey would this be seen as radical or revolutionary.
From the New York Times:
Viewing fighting as a safety issue in light of increasing concussion research, and unwilling to wait for the National Hockey League to propose changes, USA Hockey and Hockey Canada are seriously considering rules that would effectively end fighting in nonprofessional leagues as soon as next season.
and
“The official stance from Hockey Canada is that we want to get rid of fighting as quickly as we can,” said Bob Nicholson, the organization’s chief executive, overseeing more than half a million amateur players across Canada, including about 32,000 adults and 10,000 juniors (16 to 20 years old) not in the top-tier Canadian Hockey League. “Our ultimate goal is to remove fighting.”
For decades, debates centered on whether hockey could survive without fighting. It is viewed by some as a necessary thermostat regulating the heat of a physical game, and by others as a way to draw bigger audiences.
Now the talk is about how long the sport can live with fighting.
That change has perched hockey at one of the most significant crossroads of its long history, as leaders see an opening to extinguish the game’s tradition of intermittent anarchy, particularly among teenage combatants.
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