Junior hockey league takes unprecedented step by banning fights

The Quebec Main Junior Hockey League simply received an entire lot cleaner.

In an announcement launched Thursday, the QMJHL introduced new security rules that will probably be put in place forward of the 2023-24 season, together with the elimination of preventing from the highest Canadian league’s video games.

“To be able to forestall bodily and psychological violence that will lead to minor or severe harm, or in excessive circumstances, dying, the QMJHL is chargeable for establishing guidelines of intervention when a struggle happens between two or extra individuals throughout a sport, no matter whether or not they’re gamers or different crew members,” the statement read. 

The revised guidelines detailed that these collaborating in a struggle will probably be mechanically ejected from the given sport, and the participant who instigated the bout will obtain a one-game suspension. 

The individual recognized as “the aggressor” within the struggle will probably be dealt a two-game suspension, at minimal.

If a participant later will get in a second struggle, he’ll obtain an computerized one-game suspension on prime of the preliminary sport misconduct.

“Rule 47 of the Taking part in Guidelines, beginning with the 2023-24 season, supplies for fights being prohibited with extra restrictive and dissuasive sanctions with the intention to emphasize a protected high quality of play conducive to the event of gamers collaborating in QMJHL actions,” the league wrote within the assertion. 

The suspensions are a part of the key effort from new QMJHL commissioner Mario Cecchini to instill a “tradition change” within the league, as he emphasised again in March. 

“We clearly have to enhance on these conditions [fighting and hazing], and even remove them in some instances,” Cecchini stated, according to The Athletic.

“How do you make a tradition change? With loads of dedication, with loads of conviction, and with loads of precision and readability in the way you count on everybody to behave. For me, that’s going to be paramount.” 

For the AHL and ECHL –– the highest two skilled ice hockey minor leagues –– in addition to the NHL, preventing stays a permitted a part of the sport.