Defending the right to fight
Flames coach feels when foes take down his players, brawls will surely follow
I understand that it’s a sensitive subject because many people want fighting banned. But if you read the rule book this year, it’s still in (there). You’re allowed to fight. You get five minutes FLAMES COACH BOB HARTLEY
VANCOUVER— Lee Stempniak, the next morning, tracked down his coach.
Mumbling through a mouthful of stitches, he told Bob Hartley: “I had no clue what to do.”
The Calgary Flames winger, after issuing a hard check on Andrew Ference, had been unprepared for any reaction. The Edmonton Oilers captain, however, didn’t hesitate, shucking his mittens and punching Stempniak in the pie-hole.
“And he had a face sewn like a baseball,” Hartley said. “So what do you do?”
The incident reinforced Hartley’s belief that players need to be ready.
So, Thursday afternoon, a handful of prospects stayed after practice to be educated in the bare-knuckled arts.
Wearing full gear, Serge Roberge — an old-school brawler who crossed paths with Hartley when they were with the Cornwall Aces of the American Hockey League — provided the tutelage.
“I understand that it’s a sensitive subject,” Hartley said, “because many people want fighting banned. But if you read the rule book this year, it’s still in (there). You’re allowed to fight. You get five minutes.
“What’s our job as an organization, as a coaching staff? To try to protect our assets.”
Johnny Gaudreau, a couple of weeks ago, told reporters a story about Game 82 last season. After Paul Byron had piled Daniel Sedin headfirst into the boards and all heck was breaking out, Bill Arnold peeked over his shoulder.
“He saw (Kevin) Bieksa coming,” Gaudreau said, “and he was freaking out.”
That tale is good for a chuckle, but perhaps, at least for college kids such as Arnold and the rest, there is merit to the crash course.
Brian McGrattan billed it as “a defensive safeguard for young guys.”
But when the topic was broached by reporters Friday morning — “Bringing in a coach-to-coach fighting …” — Hartley bristled.
“Who said, ‘Fighting?’ ” he said. “You did. So what’s your question?”
Hartley, eventually, did elaborate.
“We understand this game… sometimes a good bodycheck will create a confrontation,” the coach said.
“If we put one of our kids in a situation where they just don’t know how to hold or how to survive, well, we’ve got a kid with a concussion or a broken jaw or a broken orbital bone. “It was about doing the right things in order to teach them to protect themselves.”
Hartley added that his team outlawed glove-dropping in training camp and, through four pre-season dates, the Flames had engaged in zero scraps.
“So we’re not promoting fighting,” he said.
“Those kids that come out of junior, those kids come out of college, we don’t expect them to get 200, 300 penalty minutes after (having a) 15-, 20-minute session on how to hold, how to protect yourself. We’re just trying to avoid some injuries and instil a little confidence in them that if someone jumps them, they know how to react and they can buy time (until the officials arrive).”
McGrattan’s lessons were less formal.
While with the Binghamton Senators, Dennis Bonvie took him under his wing.
“An American League legend,” McGrattan said of Bonvie. “Everything you see me do, he taught me.”
He has since imparted wisdom to youngsters such as Keegan Kanzig, who also participated in Roberge’s on-ice seminar.
“A lot of guys have different pointers — you pick out what works best for you and try to implement that,” said Kanzig, 6-foot-6, 248 pounds.
“It is clearly a part of the game and it’s helpful to know what you’re doing.”
Bryce Van Brabant, after three years of NCAA competition, appreciated the brush-up.
“So when you go into something like that, you’re not scared and you’re not going to put yourself in a vulnerable position,” said the Morinville, Alta., native. “It’s not so much the thug-ness of it all, it’s just for your protection.”
Hartley pointed out that teaching this subject matter is not unheard of.
In fact, the Flames did it last year, too.
“We didn’t try to hide it,” he said. “It was right after practice. We have a power-skating instructor, a skills coach — but you guys don’t talk about them.”
The fuss, though, didn’t sit well with Hartley.
“We don’t have a fight since training camp (started) and, suddenly, the world is upside-down.”
C-NOTES: RW Austin Carroll has been assigned to his junior squad, WHL Victoria. For the Flames — currently carrying 57 players — expect a bunch of cuts Saturday, which is when the Adirondack coaching staff (Ryan Huska, Todd Gill, Scott Gouthro) travels to Glens Falls, N.Y.