In:
PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science (PLoS), Vol. 17, No. 6 ( 2022-6-22), p. e0269889-
Abstract:
Fighting has been part of the fabric of the NHL for nearly a century. Recent sharp declines in the frequency of fighting and increased understanding of the long-term consequences of traumatic brain injuries have led many to question whether fighting still has a place in the modern NHL. League commissioner Gary Bettman as recently as 2019 testified before Canadian Parliament that fighting has a deterrent effect, reducing the overall level of violent and dangerous plays within the game. This study empirically examines this claim and tests whether fighting indeed serves as a deterrent to undesirable behaviors in the NHL. I examine data on all regular season penalties from 2010–2019 to determine whether fighting and the threat of fighting is empirically related the level of violence in NHL games. Using a mix of descriptive and quasi-experimental approaches, I find no quantifiable evidence that fighting serves as a deterrent to undesirable violent behaviors in the NHL. To the contrary, I find that teams and players who fight are responsible for a disproportionate amount of the violent penalties that happen across the league. These results have implications for player safety in the many professional—and especially junior—hockey leagues around the world that sanction in-game fighting.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
1932-6203
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.g001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.g002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t004
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t005
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.t006
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.s001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.s002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.s003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.r001
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.r002
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.r003
DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0269889.r004
Language:
English
Publisher:
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Publication Date:
2022
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2267670-3
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