Penguins GM Ray Shero talks with the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review about the Penguins/Islanders mess, Mario Lemieux’s statement about it, and fighting in the NHL.
I want to be a blue-collar, hard-working hockey team. We’re not a dirty team. OK, Matt Cooke – everybody is saying, “How can you say this and have Matt Cooke?” He gets fined, suspended. In the (Columbus defenseman Fedor) Tyutin case, (Cooke) was talked to by me and the coach. I talked to him after the Savard hit.
Hard-working and aggressive (play) go into the same thing. From our hockey team’s standpoint, I think we play with honor. I really do.
Elsewhere, the Trib asks if the NHL should crack down on fighting. Personally, I’d be very happy if this happened. Yes, the fans love it, and sure, it’s currently ‘part of the game,’ but it’s also meat-headed and irrelevant, and it can lead to debacles like the one we saw on Friday. I’m sure the NHL will never do it, because it would cause a decline in casual fan interest, but if NFL players can (with a few notable exceptions) get through games without really going after one another after the whistle, then surely the NHL can manage it.