Need to Vent

[All Torhs Team 0]

I played in an exibition game last night that counted for nothing, and I got in a fight during it. Rules are I am suspended for next game which is our first State game. The one game we've been working towards and practicing for all season. Im the teams captain and I feel like I let the team down incredibly.

My coaches were nuetral about the fight. They think I did the right thing in a way, but at the same time they chose me as the captain for a reason. Im supposed to be the player who keeps their cool and can keep the team focused.

I am just really down about the whole thing.

My coaches are looking for a loop hole so that I could make the game, but the only way we can think of would to be schedule a game before the state game. Which the odds are very very low.

I feel like shit and I cant apologize to my teammates enough.

[dangle 0]

That sucks bro. It doesn't matter if you were in the wrong or not, it happened so you need to make the best of it IMO. I'm sure you'd still be allowed to go behind your bench during the game? That'd be my suggestion. To go and encourage your teamates and provide support for them. An apology is needed but I think it'd be best to make up for it in future actions, not excessive apologies.

[chk hrd 164]

I played in an exibition game last night that counted for nothing, and I got in a fight during it. Rules are I am suspended for next game which is our first State game. The one game we've been working towards and practicing for all season. Im the teams captain and I feel like I let the team down incredibly.

My coaches were nuetral about the fight. They think I did the right thing in a way, but at the same time they chose me as the captain for a reason. Im supposed to be the player who keeps their cool and can keep the team focused.

I am just really down about the whole thing.

My coaches are looking for a loop hole so that I could make the game, but the only way we can think of would to be schedule a game before the state game. Which the odds are very very low.

I feel like shit and I cant apologize to my teammates enough.

if it was an exhibition game and not a USHA sanctioned game you may not have to serve the game penalty. check with the head ref.

[indaslot 0]

It is very tough, but hopefully your team will step it up for the State game. This stuff happens in hockey and you just have to get through it. Don't berate yourself. Just apologize ONCE and be an encouraging presence at the next game (don't think you can go behind the bench or in the dressing room if you are serving a suspension.)

[DarkStar50 679]

Just another life lesson taught by hockey: no player is bigger than the team. Tough way to learn that one............

[Fire0nIce228 1]

If it wasn't a sanctioned game then you should not have to miss your sanctioned one. That was basically an unofficial scrimmage

[hockeydoc 0]

If it wasn't a sanctioned game then you should not have to miss your sanctioned one. That was basically an unofficial scrimmage

It depends upon the league rules, or which governing body it's under. In Texas all USHockey sanctioned players fall under TAHA.

We had a kid get a match penalty in a scrimmage and therfore was suspended for the 1st 5 games of the season. Yes, from a scrimmage!

What's more b.s. is that one of the refs didn't even bother to show up, so it was a scrimmage requireing 2 refs, but only had 1. The 1 ref is a good ref but was on the complete opposite side of the rink from the incident, so he was in no position to see what happened. He called the kid for a kick, when what really happened was another kid fell at his feet and grabbed our kids leg and held him, just as our kids was trying to pull his leg out from the hold another kid came in and hit him in the back (nothing real hard) and caused him to step forward. He didn't step on the kid, cut him or anything, but the ref said all he saw was the "forward motion of his foot and that is a kick". Totally b.s., but the ref gave him a match, so our kid could not practice or play until we had a big hearing ...etc...

Either way I feel for you all torhs. You can't avoid everything. Pick you chin up, learn from this and make the best of it. It's good you have the support of you coaches etc.

[Chiefs18 0]

Not sure if this will work for you. If your program has another team you can "schedule" a game with on short notice you may be able to get around the rule that way. You sit that game, and are good to go for the next.

I normally wouldn't advocate this, but in your situation it seems warranted.

[Wolfpack_1986 154]

why'd you fight?

[All Torhs Team 0]

Thanks alot guys for the responses. It actually does help just knowing that everyone agree's that its something I can over come.

My coach did have a talk with me today (in front of the entire team) actually telling me that he is proud of me. He actually did the exact same thing when he was my age so it is understandable from his eyes.

The way my team works is that we do not let others set the bar for us by wins and losses. We have our own type of success and that is brother-hood/commitment and a family like atmosphere. So my coach actually said that it proves our success, that a senior stuck up for a freshmen on instinct.

Trust me I thought about trying to schedule a game before the state game but it is just not possible. Im in Illinois which is like the Texas rules I believe, where every game is a USA hockey sanctioned game. So a fight in a exibition game is a suspension still. In fact I'm in the All-Star game tonight and we thought that it might be able to be served instead of the State game but that does not work because it is not a true team game (I wouldnt be sitting for my team, I'd be sitting for a showcase). So that idea is cancelled out as well.

DarkStar50 -- Yea I understand that. By no means do I think I'm bigger than the team. What I did was just a instinct thing, I didnt stop to think 'should I jump and go'. I know that the team is more important but your right I do have to learn from this.

IndaSlot -- I do plan on being there for the game, actually my coach wants me to have an extra long talk before the game to my teammates to get them extra pumped up. I am working on a way to still help the team by not skating, through encouragement. I'll be there though not on the bench but supporting.

puck_it -- The reason I got in the fight was because three guys on the opposing team jumped one of our players. 3-1 and my guy was with his back on the ice. One guy held him down and two were punching him in the head. WITH THREE REFS somehow none of them saw this happen. When I saw it I didnt even think I just jumped and was gone. Dont even remember skating there, just remember fighting. Thats why I did it, to protect one of my best friends, even though he is a freshmen, he is like a brother to me.

Off the record Im sure some one out there is wondering what exactly happened in the fight. I knee'd a kid in the head which pushed his helmet off and his face is pretty bruised up. He has a concussion. Another one of their players grabbed me but I quickly got him in a headlock and got his head at my knee level and tried to get some scraps in but by then the ref had me down. It was then I got escorted off the ice. (the kid who got knee'd was down on the ice for a good 5 minutes)

Not that I want everybody to think Im hardcore and all that ;)

[rinkrat94 1]

I know it is hard to control your emotions sometimes, especially when you see a good friend get jumped. In my opinion you should be thankful that you only got 1 game. A knee to the head is a real dirty and dangerous play.

[mrusse01 0]

I know it is hard to control your emotions sometimes, especially when you see a good friend get jumped. In my opinion you should be thankful that you only got 1 game. A knee to the head is a real dirty and dangerous play.

If the guy is on the ground pinning down a teammate, a knee to the head may be warranted.

Way to stand up for your teammate and friend. Sometimes there is more important things than winning or losing and if protecting your teammate in that situation is something you felt you had to do then you shouldn't feel ashamed or embarassed at all for being suspended.

[BigDipper 0]

I agree with everything everyone has said here. I once got 10 games for spitting a mouthguard at a ref and the team got fined $1000. I've been down that road too. You did the right thing..and with anything, it comes with consequences. Unfortunately, in any sport, not everything can be taught, some things have to be learned by experience and this is one of them. Pick your spots, that's all. Chalk it up to experience. You didn't let anybody down, not even yourself. You did what you felt at that moment was the right thing do, and as a team leader you not only showed character, but a willingness to sstick up for what's right. I feel bad for anybody that got hurt, no question about that, and it's sad that it had to come to that. But..in future, because of this, you'll know what to do, when to do it, and more importantly HOW to do it, AND as a leader you can pass that on to others too. Good luck the rest of the way buds.

[ashtonhutch05 0]

If I were you, I wouldn't feel to bad at all. You were helping out a friend in trouble. You could have saved him from being injured badly if they were beating him while he was down. I'm sure your team understands. Just a bad situation really. All you can do is support your team at their game now.

[Shield3 0]

I was going to make a seperate thread about a suspension I was given last night but the title of this one describes my feelings exactly, I hope its ok that I rant on this thread lol, so here it is...

This weekend we were up north for a 2 game roady. We were given a fairly lenient curfew of 1:30 to be back at the hotel after the first game. All but 7 skaters and 3 goalies didnt make curfew. Being an assistant captain and one of the 10 players that made the curfew I was dissapointed in my teammates to say the least. After a 6 hour bus ride to the second game, the team was informed that the boys that missed curfew would not dress. Knowing that I would be logging 40-50 minutes of ice time against the second place team, I was nervous and unoptimistic about the game. Midway through the second, we were playing well all things considered, down 3-2. I hopped off the bench for a line change during a stoppage in play. It was then that I noticed two of the opposing team's players shoving and whacking our leading scorer. Instincitively, I grabbed one of the two guys and threw him aside while the refs skated over to break it all up. I then went to skate to the faceoff circle to line up when the ref grabbed me from behind and told me I was kicked out for leaving the bench during an altercation. I was furious to say the least. I had no intention of starting anything, I just wanted to prevent what couldve been a brawl, which would've been catastrophic to our 7-skater team. The result of my actions, however ended up being the nail in the coffin for my team as the 6 remaining skaters simply didnt have the endurance in the second half of the game, and we lost 10-2. Not only do I feel like shit for hanging my mates out to dry for the rest of the game, but I also am going to be sitting out for the remaining 3 games of the regular season. Although it was technically the right call, the ref (who was bitter about us dressing 7 skaters and playing a boring trap) made a pretty gutless decision in my opinion.

[Tricky4L 0]

I know it is hard to control your emotions sometimes, especially when you see a good friend get jumped. In my opinion you should be thankful that you only got 1 game. A knee to the head is a real dirty and dangerous play.

If the guy is on the ground pinning down a teammate, a knee to the head may be warranted.

Way to stand up for your teammate and friend. Sometimes there is more important things than winning or losing and if protecting your teammate in that situation is something you felt you had to do then you shouldn't feel ashamed or embarassed at all for being suspended.

Dude really!? A knee to a guy's head giving him a concussion is not standing up for a teammate...thats just being a classless ass. Honestly if you want to stand up for a teammate then either properly square up with the guy or lay his ass out cleanly later in the game. Its chickenshit moves like this that give our sport a bad name. Honestly I don't care what level of hockey that is be it youth, juniors, pro, rec or anything else for that matter... in no way is that an appropriate reaction to a guy "pinning down a teammate".

Some people would/will blast me for saying that pulling the guy off and having a punch-in-the-face contest is a better alternative but really dude, kneeing a guy in the lid is completely inappropriate and I think that is what you should be apologizing to your team for.

[mrusse01 0]

Honestly I don't care what level of hockey that is be it youth, juniors, pro, rec or anything else for that matter... in no way is that an appropriate reaction to a guy "pinning down a teammate".

He said his teammate was being pinned down by one guy, and getting PUNCHED IN THE FACE by two more. You want to just be a gentleman about it and pull the one guy off and square up with him, while the other two keep punching your buddy in the face? Glad you aren't on my team.

[Tricky4L 0]

So pull one guy off and do what you will, but don't rush in there with a knee... its knee-jerk reactions like that, that have made guys like Chris Simon the players that they are. More so on you're logic, how does kneeing one guy in the head make anymore sense while two guys are still punching him in the face?

If you think that kneeing a guy in the head is the correct response on a play where the refs should be skating in there anyway then you're a true prat and I'm glad you're not on my team.

[mrusse01 0]

More so on you're logic, how does kneeing one guy in the head make anymore sense while two guys are still punching him in the face?

If you knee the one guy he is probably done, so then there are two other guys left, you grab one of them and now it's 2 on 2. That's how it makes sense logically.

I'm not saying it's the right thing to do, just that depending on the severity of the situation I can see how it could potentially be an appropriate response. Sounded like a pretty serious situation when the OP'er explained it, so I can see how his response could be justifiable.

[Tricky4L 0]

good god...then would a baseball swing to the head be justifiable as well then?

[Hawk 0]

From a coach's perspective what All-Tohrs did was wrong. He's the 3rd man in and he's out of the game and then a suspension for at least one more game. On the other hand a coach really appreciates a leader that sticks up for his teammate....particularly when the teammate is getting doubled up. Is this a contradiction? Of course. He was in a no-win situation.

Some of the posts address the knee to the head as if it was intentional on All-Tohrs part. Very unfortunate for the player that got the knee to the helmet but it wasn't intentional.

[mrusse01 0]

good god...then would a baseball swing to the head be justifiable as well then?

You can justify anything depending on the situation.

No point in commenting on this further, without being there and witnessing it you can't even debate about if what he did was right or wrong.

[biff44 0]

Stinks for sure. I would not blame yourself too much. Did the coach sit you all down before the game and say "now remember to not get any game suspensions so you can play in the big game....walk away if it gets too rough"?

It sometimes helps to think these things through before the game.

Back when Hector was a pup, we used to take down the player's number, and then a period later a couple of us would, in series, deliver a couple of bone crunching checks. If done right, you don't even sit for 2, but the player certainly got the message. Don't be so fast to drop the gloves.

Also, you can do a lot of grabbing, throwing a player off, even choking the guy if you can shield the ref's view a little, and at most sit for 2. Once you start swinging, or kneeing a guy in the head, it is hard for the ref to not notice it!