What’s an ice hockey game without a few dirty punches?
If you're a hardcore NHL fan or just enjoy watching ice hockey players leave it all out on the ice, you’ve probably seen a brawl or two occur during a heated game.
Dating back to 1922, players were minimally punished for initiating fights. While sports like the NFL have fined players large sums of money for getting into brawls, NHL refs have typically given players five minutes out of the game with a possible ejection. At times, players, a team or a coach can be given a fine but nothing as hefty as an NFL fee.
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As the NFL season is underway, here is a running list of the most memorable, must-see fights of the 2022-23 NHL season:
November 3: Braden Schneider (NYR) vs. Trent Frederic (BOS)
The second period during Thursday night’s game at MSG was definitely a smack-in-the-face for Boston.
Bruins’ center Trent Frederic was intensely hit by Rangers’ defenseman Braden Schneider, which set off a cascade of fights in the following minutes, including Boston’s A.J. Greer fighting Schneider and Frederic fighting Rangers forward Barclay Goodrow.
Despite the contention, the Bruins defeated the Rangers 5-2 to lock in their 10th win of the season.
October 22: Cole Smith (NSH) vs. Nick Seeler (PHI)
There was no love lost in this first-period fight between Predators' Cole Smith and Flyers' Nick Seeler.
After battling it out with exchanged punches and shoving, Seeler's helmet flew off but went on to seemingly win the brawl.
The Flyers went on to win the game 3-1.
October 21: Kurtis MacDermid (COL) vs. Jamie Oleksiak (SEA)
This first-period fight between Avalanche's Kurtis MacDermid and Kranken's Jamie Oleksiak took some time to build up before the two aggressively got into it.
MacDermid won the fight pretty handily as he took a few punches at Oleksiak's eye.
Kranken went on to win the game 3-2.
October 20: Arber Xhekaj (MON) vs. Zack Kassian (ARI)
This first-period brawl between the Montreal Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj and Arizona Coyotes' Zack Kassian did not disappoint fans.
In a highly anticipated battle between the two, rookie Xhekaj absolutely demolished Kassian with a bunch of punches before pushing the 31-year-old to the ground.
The Canadiens defeated the Coyotes 6-2.
October 18: Olivier Mathieu (CBJ) vs. Luke Schenn (VAN)
In the first period, Columbus Blue Jackets' Oliver Mathieu and Vancouver Canucks' Luke Schenn battled it out for the second time in their careers.
The brawl mainly consisted of tugging before Schenn was able to sneak in a few punches. Schenn appeared to narrowly win the fight at the end despite ultimately losing the game 4-3.
October 13: Marcus Foligno (MIN) vs. Ryan Reaves (NYR)
In this third-period fight, Wild's Marcus Foligno and Rangers' Ryan Reaves battle it out as New York leads the showdown 6-3.
Both players exchange multiple punches with helmets flying off in a fight that appears to crown Reaves as the winner.
San Jose Sharks
The Rangers went on to win the game 7-3.
Oct. 12: Maxime Comtois (ANA) vs. William Borgen (SEA)
In this third-period fight, Maxime Comtois of the Anaheim Ducks and William Borgen of the Seattle Kraken exchanged a handful of punches.
The fight ended in what seemed to be a draw as the two fell to the ice.
At the time of the fight, Seattle led 3-2 but then went on to lose to the Ducks 5-4.
Oct. 10: Mark Borowiecki (NSH) vs. Jonah Gadjovich (SJS)
In this second-period fight, Mark Borowiecki of the Nashville Predators and Jonah Gadjovich of the San Jose Sharks battled it out in the first memorable fight of the year.
The Predators had led 2-1 at the time and went on to capture the win 3-2.
At the beginning of the fight, Borowiecki was in control, punching Gadjovich's face a few times before the two fell on the ground with the Shark landing on top.