Fighting in hockey is one of those things for which there is no shortage of strongly held opinions. Bernstein, a Minnesotan, attempts to take the reader inside the unwritten rules that govern fisticuffs at the professional level. He deserves credit for a balanced approach to the subject that also explores the background of some of the more notorious incidents that have occurred over the past couple decades (Todd Bertuzzi is the most recent example) and putting them in greater perspective. Subtitled The Unwritten Rules of Fighting and Retaliation in the NHL, the book creates a greater understanding of "the code" for outsiders. However, it suffers somewhat from repetitiveness. After all, there really are only so many ways to tell the reader that the "enforcers" follow an unwritten code and why their roles are intended to protect skill players and to police play on the ice. Since Bernstein wrote the book following the recent rule changes that have reduced the number of fights in the NHL as well as caused many NHL teams to question the need for a pure enforcer on the roster, it is quite relevant to the continuing debate over fighting in the sport.

Originally posted with two other hockey book reviews at http://prairieprogressive.com/?p=971