Salon.com > Hockey

Blood on the ice

Wed, 02 May 2012 19:31:00 +0000

Out of all the sports that try to shroud hardcore violence in the veneer of athleticism -- and there are many -- none has a closer relationship to bloodshed than professional hockey. This is an institution that goes beyond professional football in that it doesn’t merely permit bone-crushing hits as a part of the game itself -- it all but condones players halting a game in progress to break out into fisticuffs.

In the past, when anyone has aired criticism of hockey’s connection to violence, the typical response is that it’s part of the sport’s tradition. In much the same way it has been used in politics to pretend problems are unfixable, this “culture” argument in hockey has served as a flippant conversation ender -- one that short-circuits any frank discussion of what fuels such a culture and whether it should be changed. As the logic goes, the culture has always defined the sport, and always will -- so why judge its value or lack thereof?

Left unexplored is why such a culture exists? That topic is avoided because it might make the violence seem like a symptom of something bigger rather than an isolated problem. That is, it might turn the mirror away from the game and onto its fans -- in the process reflecting back the image of a violence-glorifying society that all-too-eagerly condones brutality as a matter of principle.

Nearly 150 hurt in Vancouver riot following hockey loss

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:51:07 +0000

Almost 150 people required hospital treatment overnight as rioters swept through downtown Vancouver following a Canucks loss to the Boston Bruins in the decisive Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.

Vancouver Coastal Health spokeswoman Anna Marie D'Angelo said Thursday three stabbing victims have been admitted and an unidentified man is in critical condition with head injuries after a fall.

She said most of the rioting victims were treated at St. Paul's Hospital in downtown Vancouver, while about 40, including the stabbing cases and the head injury patient, were being treated at Vancouver General Hospital.

Rioting and looting left cars burned, stores in shambles and windows shattered over a roughly ten block radius of the city's main shopping district.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said "organized hoodlums bent on creating chaos incited the riot" and noted the city proved with the 2010 Winter Olympics that it could hold peaceful gatherings. A local business leader estimated more than 50 businesses have been damaged.

"They were here to make trouble and they succeeded," Robertson said.

Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu has called a news conference for later Thursday.

Cars set on fire in Vancouver after hockey defeat

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 10:42:00 +0000

Angry, drunken fans ran wild Wednesday night after the Vancouver Canucks' 4-0 loss to Boston in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, setting cars and garbage cans ablaze, smashing windows, showering giant TV screens with beer bottles and dancing atop overturned vehicles.

Later, looters smashed windows and ran inside department stores.

"We have a small number of hooligans on the streets of Vancouver causing problems," Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said. "It's absolutely disgraceful and shameful and by no means represents the city of Vancouver. ... We have had an extraordinary run in the playoff, great celebration. What's happened tonight is despicable."

Police said they had reports of four stabbings, though spokeswoman Const. Jana McGuinness said she couldn't confirm them.

Officers from around the region flooded into downtown, and Robertson said things were getting under control, but the images and atmosphere that persisted late into the night suggested otherwise.

It took about four hours before downtown quieted again.

While Robertson said there had been no fatalities, ambulances appeared to be having trouble getting inside the zone to help the injured. TV images showed at least one woman mopping blood from her forehead.