Fighting will soon be fazed out of the OHL based on the direction the league is going.The OHL announced Friday new rules for the upcoming season which further deter fighting from the game. A player who exceeds three fights in a season will automatically receive a two-game suspension, a drastic change from the previous rule that was in place and implemented for the 2012-13 season. The previous rule allowed for 10 fights per player before triggering a suspension. Each scuffle above the three-fight limit will lead to a two-game ban.The league notes that if a player is instigated upon that it will not count as a fighting major, and therefore not be included in his total number of fights."As the number one development league in the world for the NHL and CIS, the OHL continually challenges ourselves to improve the on-ice environment and evolve the game for the benefit of the most important people in our game, our players," OHL commissioner David Branch said in a statement.Last season's league leader in fights was Jacob Friend with 13, but the league says no player went above the 10-fight limit in any of the last two seasons, meaning he was instigated against in at least a few of those brawls. Fighting has gone down a whopping 49.5 percent since the 10-fight threshold was established, according to the league.The NHL has similarly seen fighting drastically reduced over the years, with more than half fewer fights per game during the 2015-16 season compared to 2001-02, according to Hockey Fights. There were 344 total fights in the NHL last season, the lowest number since data was tracked at the site starting for the 2000-01 season.The OHL also announced other rules to address player safety, including a "blindside hit" rule that will trigger a penalty for any player who checks an opponent from the blindside. The referee will have the option of issuing a minor, major and game misconduct or match penalty, and the league could take further disciplinary action.Lastly, the OHL will adopt the NHL's hybrid icing rule.
Advertisement