force the unwritten rules of the game, where a team goon is to protect and defend anyone who goes near a star player like Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux. Some of these fighters or bodyguards are paid just for that purpose alone to protect the star player. Marty McSorley of the Boston Bruins is a prime example, he is seen throughout the league as an enforcer and a fighter and he took it to the extreme recently when he hit a player over the head with his stick, and the National Hockey League (NHL) suspended him for the entire season. When interviewed he said that people don't understand that all he wanted to do was start a fight with him. This is something that has to be controlled by the league. Especially in hockey where fighting is not discouraged. When the NHL are asked to try and remove the violence from their sport, they are hesitant because it is not what a lot of the fans want. Some of the best-selling hockey videos have been a collection of the best fights in the NHL. Why should these leagues remove the violence that is occurring if they are making money and keeping people in the seats? Some fans of hockey want to see these situations and eliminating the fighting aspect would change their feelings towards supporting the sport. On the other hand, there are many people who may enjoy the sport more if the fighting did not occur. So the NHL is put into a tough situation. Even former NHL president Clarence Campbell felt that the violence taking place in his league was called for and was reluctant to remove the fighting because he knew that it is what the majority of hockey fans want. So the league needs to look at what the majority of fans out their want to see. The NHL does not promote the violence but it does tolerate it. This is something that needs to be looked at more thoroughly. There are many ways that the NHL can eliminate or, at least, cut down the amount of violence in the sport. One way is to increase the penalty time...
