The game between the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals Friday night quickly escalated to the next level, featuring a full line brawl, with goalies fighting as well. But something came to the forefront of the fight between Braden Holtby and Ray Emery.
Player safety.
More specifically, the "third man into a fight" rule. As Ray Emery was pounding down on the back of Braden Holtby's head, it should have occurred to those watching that it wasn't so much a fight as it was a one-sided beating.
Section 46.16 of the NHL rulebook, titled "Third Man In," states the following:
A game misconduct penalty, at the discretion of the Referee, shall be imposed on any player who is the first to intervene (third man in) in an altercation already in progress except when a match penalty is being imposed in the original altercation. This penalty is in addition to any other penalties incurred in the same incident.
With the NHL strongly enforcing player safety by punishing hits to the head with supplemental discipline, it would only make sense to protect players further during a fight as well.
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Article written by Isaac Smith
Flyers-Capitals Line Brawl Shows ‘3rd Man into Fight’ Rule Needs Addressing
November 2nd, 2013 by Isaac Smith Leave a reply »
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