Future generations of hockey players will have to settle for extreme athleticism without resorting to violence.
Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby further cemented his legacy as arguably the best player of his generation this past week by contributing a goal and three assists against the Buffalo Sabres and hitting the 1600-point mark for his career. This achievement places Crosby in the Top 10 all-time for career points. While Sid the Kid’s best playing days might be behind him, he still seems to tally minutes and point totals that are, on average, close to his career best. This fact was not lost on the Penguins’ brass either, as they have signed him through his age 39 season of 2026-27.
Crosby’s distinguished career, which includes three Stanley Cup rings and two Olympic gold medals, should be revered as even more remarkable for his persistence. He was sidelined for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) for most of the 2011-12 and missed over half of the following season when you add time missed from the 2012-13 player lockout.
Hard contact to the head and targeted hits almost derailed Sidney Crosby’s career while playing at peak performance. Despite only playing 58 games across those two seasons, Crosby was still able to shine, tallying 93 points. One would have to think that his total during that time could have easily doubled had he been healthy.
Such a feat would have potentially put him past fellow Pittsburgh legend Mario Lemieux at #8 on the all-time points list. It is hard to think about NHL hockey over the past 20 years without Sidney Crosby’s name high on the list of distinguished players. But the reality is that he could have been sidelined permanently from injuries incurred on the ice.
Is there a saving grace for future players? Yes. It is the decline of the enforcer’s role in the NHL.
The Crosby years were a time of change in the brand of hockey, especially during the regular season. Most teams abandoned the assignment of the designated “tough guy” who, while moderately skilled, was mainly on the roster to “take care of business” if one of their skilled players was being targeted.
Consider this. Derek Dorsett of the Columbus Blue Jackets was the NHL leader in penalty minutes during Crosby’s first season of inactivity at 235. In 2022-23, Pat Maroon led with the Tampa Bay Lightning with 150 minutes in the box. Meaning? The new brand of pro hockey puts heavy emphasis on speed and passing. Moreover, refs hand down steep penalties in fines and suspensions for dirty hits–on-ice behavior that used to be commonplace.
So, the role of the enforcer has changed from a priority and policy to a relic of hockey history.
The 1970s represented a time of all-out street brawls and legendary rivalries of head-to-head fisticuffs. Superstars of the era include players like Bobby Orr, Bobby Clake, or Guy Lafleur, who would dazzle fans with skill and speed never before seen. But they also had some of the toughest, meanest, and perhaps dirtiest “protectors” to have ever stepped on the ice.
–Orr had, among others, Terry O’Reilly, a mullet-wearing brawler who, despite having substantial playmaking skills, would do whatever he could to draw attention away from Orr. That included some of the most legendary fights in NHL history, which has etched O’Reilly’s name in Boston’s sports folklore.
–Then there was Dave “The Hammer” Schultz of the Philadelphia Flyers, who helped to create and sustain the team’s identity as “The Broad Street Bullies.” Shultz ensured that Bobby Clarke would have his looks and scoring chances through force and intimidation. Impact? It brought the Stanley Cup to southeast PA.
–A third example is the Canadiens’ John Furguson, who would intimidate anyone who attempted to get in the way of Guy Lafleur or Yvan Cournoyer on their way to the team’s Cup-winning campaigns.
The formula of physical taunting, intimidation, and the willingness to drop the gloves and throw fists at any moment seemed to work. It was a hallmark era that still, to this day, represents toughness, survival, and glory for their respective cities. Every Stanley Cup champion team from that era onwards had “one of ‘those’ guys.” In the 1980s, a team’s enforcer often took on the celebrity status of a prized boxer.
–Mike Bossy and the Islanders had a combination of the Sutter brothers, Brent and Duane, and a goalie in Billy Smith, who would step up and fight at any moment.
–Wayne Gretzky had Dave Semenko and later Marty McSorley, who would not allow any player to stand in the way of their star’s pathway to greatness.
–Detroit’s Bob Probert or Chris Nilan of the Montreal Canadiens was as much of an attraction for fans at the time as Steve Yzerman or any of the top-skilled goal scorers.
Hockey fans wanted fights, gloves dropped, jerseys pulled, and blood drawn. It was a staple of the game. But it came with a high price. CTE had been overlooked, even disregarded, until the 2000s, when its symptoms became too much to ignore. It was not just the contribution of head injuries but addiction and substance abuse that often went with it.
The deaths of NHL enforcers Probert and later Derek Bogaard, Wade Belak, and Rick Rypien (to name a few) eventually spoke too loudly to be ignored. New penalties, including 5-minute majors and instigator/misconduct penalties, became deterrents. A new era of hockey emerged, placing value and emphasis on the fundamentals of the game, replacing violence and aggression.
Nowadays, it is hard to identify any NHL team with “that guy.” While we fans can still enjoy stories that extol hockey’s warriors of the past, it’s a history book we’re applauding. What used to be isn’t in the game these days, and I’d say that trading violence for athleticism isn’t such a bad deal—not a bad deal at all.
