Well, generally referees do intervene if a guy truly doesn't want to fight. If that individual drops his gloves though, that's usually a pretty decent indicator that he's at least a semi-willing participant - at that point, generally speaking, I don't want to see referees awkwardly trying to hog tie two guys throwing bombs - it's easy for players to get hurt in those situation.
I didn't see any sucker punches; I saw some players who were initially hesitant, and then did what they felt they had to in a ridiculously intense matchup between historic rivals. Even Krejci fought... which was absolutely stupid. 2 fights in his career, and they're both this year against Montreal... Les Habitants get David all fired up!
I loved the fighting in the Boston Vs Montreal game. It was very old school, and generally each situation happened after someone got a little too wound up and stepped over the line (like Marchand's hit on Wisniewski, etc.). The guys were just jacked up.
You also have a couple of young players - Subban, and Pacioretty - who are both going to be awesome, but frankly, they have the look of 'habitual line steppers' (to borrow from Charlie Murphy). They both like to talk, and they're playing with an edge, and that type of behavior gets one noticed, so to speak. If they keep it up, Montreal may need to look at adding a little more toughness. You don't want your skill guys always answering the bell in those situations.
I didn't see any sucker punches; I saw some players who were initially hesitant, and then did what they felt they had to in a ridiculously intense matchup between historic rivals. Even Krejci fought... which was absolutely stupid. 2 fights in his career, and they're both this year against Montreal... Les Habitants get David all fired up!
I loved the fighting in the Boston Vs Montreal game. It was very old school, and generally each situation happened after someone got a little too wound up and stepped over the line (like Marchand's hit on Wisniewski, etc.). The guys were just jacked up.
You also have a couple of young players - Subban, and Pacioretty - who are both going to be awesome, but frankly, they have the look of 'habitual line steppers' (to borrow from Charlie Murphy). They both like to talk, and they're playing with an edge, and that type of behavior gets one noticed, so to speak. If they keep it up, Montreal may need to look at adding a little more toughness. You don't want your skill guys always answering the bell in those situations.
