Colorado Avalanche Detroit Red Wings brawl and fights 1997 part 2

Colorado Avalanche Detroit Red Wings brawl and fights 1997 part-2

Severyn-Pushor
Corbet-Maltby
Forsberg-Larionov
Lemieux-McCarty
Roy-Vernon
Deadmarsh-Konstantinov
Foote-Shanahan
Keane-Holmstrom
Severyn-Ward
Deadmarsh-McCarty
Krupp-Pushor

WINGS FANS WANTED BLOOD, REVENGE - THEY GOT IT
MITCH ALBOM. Detroit Free Press. March 27, 1997.

Darren McCarty will never pay for a meal in this town again. In two explosive moments that embody all that is right with hockey and all that is wrong with it, McCarty made an unforgettable impression on this Detroit Red Wings season. In the first moment, he bloodied the game. In the second, he won it.

Let us begin with the first, late in the opening period Wednesday night, when he spun away from a linesman and coldcocked Colorado's Claude Lemieux in the face.

Lemieux fell to his knees, fans jumped to their feet, and you could kiss any chance of a normal hockey game this evening good-bye. It was Fight Night now at Joe Louis Arena. And McCarty wasn't finished. He whacked Lemieux again with a left- handed fist, and when Lemieux curled into a crouch, holding his bleeding face, McCarty held him by the back of the neck with one hand and swung repeatedly with the other, throwing punches that seemed to have the force of the entire, roaring building behind them.

Before he was done, McCarty would drag Lemieux, stunned and bloody, to the front of the Wings bench, like a caveman dragging his kill to the front of his cave, showing it off for the others. All that was missing was McCarty banging on his chest and doing a Tarzan yell.

But by that point, who would have noticed? The game had disintegrated into a series of bouts that made the Joe Louis ice look like the elimination rounds of a Toughman contest.

Not only were Peter Forsberg and Igor Larionov -- two of the more nonviolent and creative players in hockey -- now rolling around like high school wrestlers, not only were stars like Brendan Shanahan and Adam Foote doing a muscle tango, but -- and this is not an exaggeration -- the two goalies were slugging it out at center ice.

The goalies? Yes. Patrick Roy and Mike Vernon, caught up in the violent spirit, now were swinging away beneath layers of thick clothing, their pads flopping, their pants baggy and wet as they spun, slapped, grasped, yanked and clawed at each other. Awkward? It was like watching sumo wrestling in a laundry pile.

The goalies?

Hockeytown, right?

This is what Wednesday was for much of the night, not a showdown between two of the best teams in hockey, not a rematch between last year's Western Conference finalists, but a game in which you couldn't see two minutes of skating without seeing five minutes of boxing, spinning, cursing, bleeding, slapping, yelling and taking a number in the penalty box.

And, of course, the game was completely altered. It is no accident that one goal was scored before McCarty pummeled Lemieux and six goals were scored in the next 21 minutes. You tend to lose your concentration when your face is dotted with bandages.

"For the first two periods the issue of winning the game seemed to be completely irrelevant," admitted Red Wing captain Steve Yzerman.

But can anyone really be surprised? Fans in Detroit waited for Wednesday night's game the way teenagers wait for the next "Nightmare on Elm Street" to open. They wanted revenge for the bloody night last season when Lemieux cheap-shotted Kris Draper into the boards, breaking his jaw. This has nothing to do with hockey and everything to do with power and swagger and feeling like nobody kicks us around, man, don't mess with us, man, we'll kick your butt, man.

You'll pardon me if I'm not impressed. All night long I kept seeing zoom-ins on the big screen of children watching these fights in the stands, waving and laughing. And living in a city where, in the past two weeks, we've buried a half-dozen kids to senseless, tough-guy violence, I don't get my jollies anymore at bloodshed. I've lost the ability to be proud of watching someone else fight and claiming it as some sort of victory for me.

But if this is what the NHL folks want, they got it. It has always been where hockey falls off the mountain of big-time pro sports and lands in some local rink in Saskatchewan. You do what McCarty did in the NBA, the NFL or major league baseball, and you're suspended immediately.

In hockey? McCarty was back fighting by the second period. So was everyone else. By the time the game was done, there were 39 penalties, and far too many fights to list, let alone remember. At one point, Aaron Ward and Brent Severyn got so involved, Severyn was stripped down to his waist, bare-chested, looking like some 1890s prizefighter.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Colorado Avalanche
• Detroit Red Wings
• brawl
• hockeyfights
• 1997
• Severyn
• Pushor
• Corbet
• Maltby
• Forsberg
• Larionov
• Lemieux
• McCarty
• Roy
• Vernon
• Deadmarsh
• Konstantinov
• Foote
• Shanahan
• Keane
• Holmstrom
• Ward
• Krupp
• rough house hockey

[emusylate]

lol at the blonde lady far left at 3:11

[12345JJBB]

3 comments and 5000 views?

[AryuTakomie89]

I think Darren McCarty spent more time in the box than actually playing! This is just one reason why I love the red wings!

[purpledino167]

@buttxdart oh hell no. The reason we had a bad season last year was because of allthe injuries, and our goalies sucked and our defense wasnt that great. Now we got 2 kick ass goalies and strong defense men. Avalanche are gunna kick some serious ass this season!

[buttxdart]

@purpledino167 Nope sorry your Avs are out be4 they even start.

[AvsFan919]

@A7X4life897 (cont.) Avalanche fans have gotten the reputation for being stupid to say the least because every year some jackass says "avs are gonna win the cup this year". When in reality they wont be contending for the cup for at least 2 or 3 years given how the new free agents mesh with the team. You want a real hockey talk? Try me

[AvsFan919]

@A7X4life897 I never said youth wins cups, I said our youth needs to develop into their potential. Why must every wings fan feel the need to bring up datsyuk in every argument? I mean yeah hes got talent but what about the rest of your team? You cant have datsyuk score all the goals and make all the saves, even though he probably could. One player doesnt win cups just like youth doesnt win cups. If your gonna give the "red wings are better" speech then try and do it without mentioning datsyuk.

[purpledino167]

@A7X4life897 Nah man, 2012 cup belongs to the Avs. I don't care what you say, i'm never giving up on my team.

[A7X4life897]

@purpledino167 i apologize to you and every other avalanche fan on this page trying to salvage the slightest bit of dignity you can but you will be waiting a very long time for another cup if you ever have one again.

[A7X4life897]

@AvsFan919 lmao avalanche have been "rebuilding" for what almost 10 years??? any true hockey fan or player in my case knows youth doesnt always win cups. your team has proved that for a long long time. why dont you think of some youth that can match up with datsuk or lidstrom even when they were young then you can have some hockey talk with me. you cant just develop talent like that my friend

[AvsFan919]

@pkmaster72 Its part of the rebuilding stage bud. Before too long we will get back to contending for the division. Our affiliate was first in the confrence so we got a bunch of young talent that needs to develop. The wings are stacked, but you better have something in the making cuz your franchise player is already 32 and the rest of your roster isnt getting any younger. Considering your probably a fucking nerd and doesnt have a clue what true hockey is Go Fuck Yourself.

[pkmaster72]

Considering Avalanche was only 2 ranks away from last place this year they can go fuck them selves.