Day 17- 29,052 Words

I took yesterday off because my former roommate and one of my best friends from my undergrad, Angela (Manta), happened to be driving through Indiana yesterday and she stopped in to see me!  We had a great time, but unfortunately, I didn't make any progress in my novel.  I am really hard-pressed to pick something out for this post, since I mostly wrote about hockey today and what my opinion is on fighting in the NHL.  But, since people who aren't Indigo have basically stopped blogging and commenting, I'm going to post something underwhelming anyway.

As Penny Lane once again sat in her cubicle reading the day’s paper, she made a point to read the article that she had supposedly submitted.  She often enjoyed this practice, even though she did not understand what exactly “she” had been talking about.  After a morning of newspaper reading she would often make her exit for a long lunch, followed by an afternoon of recipe imagining and ModCloth shopping.  She would then retreat to her apartment that smelled like a hockey bag to spend the night at her leisure.  She often tuned into “Becoming (Cup)cake: The (Inter)liminality of Bite-Sized Desserts” to see how her beloved bakery was faring without her.  She noted that Carson had been on the show quite a bit more than she might have liked (it was her show, not his!), but that was probably exclusively Gordon’s doing.  She made a point to tell Ellie to stay away from him, but in a really funny way so that it sounded like she was forbidding her to see him.  It would be just like the Montagues and the Capulets, except in real life.

It was quiet, but it was exactly what she wanted.  Gordon never burst into her bedroom when she was sleeping to ask her to get pregnant or get married to Kim Kardashian’s ex-husband Kris Humphries for 71 days, exactly one day less than Kim had been married to him, because it would make for riveting television.  Sharon had once stopped by to talk things over, which was pretty annoying, but it was easily resolved because she just pretended that she wasn’t at home.

Ellie’s article was longer than usual, which annoyed Penny Lane because it would be more work to read it.

More Questions Than Answers As We Say Goodbye

By Eleanor Abbott

The funeral of Walso Balek, a man who left us far too soon, drew thousands of people.  The stories that were told were about a man who was a joy to play hockey with, a great father and husband, and an important member of the community who always made it a priority to give back to others who come from similarly humble beginnings.  With his red hair and elaborate tattoo sleeves, Balek was a charming character in the Maple Leafs dressing room, someone who never took himself too seriously and was willing to do whatever it took to stay in the NHL.  These are the stories that we like to tell, and these are the kinds of stories that we should tell.  Waldo Balek was the kind of man who deserves to be remembered fondly.  We are all in mourning, and the hockey world is reeling.  The loss of such a wonderful life is always cause for sadness.

But, the conversation cannot stop there.  It would be an insult to the man that Balek was, and it would do a disservice to those who struggle the way that he did.  We have to talk about the context in which his death occurred, and what our responsibilities should be as a society moving forward.

Perhaps if Balek had been the first professional hockey enforcer to die in this way in recent months, we may not be asking these questions.  But in light of the deaths of New York Rangers forward Derek Boogaard in May as a result of an accidental overdose of alcohol and the painkiller oxycodone and Winnipeg Jets forward Rick Rypien two weeks prior to Balek in what authorities called a "sudden and non-suspicious" death, I can’t help but wonder: how many NHL enforcers need to die this way before we acknowledge that there are commonalities amongst them that are incredibly likely to have contributed to each of their deaths? Is it really that difficult for people to see that the emotional and physical effects of a lifetime of hockey—and hockey fights, in particular—are too much to expect players to go through in the name of entertainment?  Does the amount that they are paid to compete in the National Hockey League justify what can sometimes justifiably be compared to gladiator fights at the coliseum?  And what does it say about our society that we stand up and cheer these men on as they punch one another in the face and beat each other up?

People are asking some of these questions, with former players and enforcers in particular stepping up.  As retired NHL enforcer and current member of Canada’s Green Party tweeted, “What? ... What’s with all the tough guys dying or having problems?  Am I next on the list? That’s unbelievable.”  Retired NHL star Big Keith Primeau also tweeted, “My own personal feeling is I believe there’s a direct correlation with the line of work that they’re in.” Former Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas has been less than helpful, as he has primarily been using his Facebook page to defend the rights of American religious institutions to refuse to provide birth control free of charge with their employee insurance plans, events that he somehow has found the extremely misguided audacity to compare to the holocaust.

It is incredibly clear that fighting for a living is conducive to an unhealthy body and mind, and the NHL and the NHLPA have taken some steps to address this.  For instance, the program “BreakAway” helps players to transition out of the NHL mindset as their careers wind down or end.  These programs are typically underused, however, so their effect is not as great as it could be. 

However, more needs to be done.  While it is important to address the problems that arise as a result of a lifetime of competition in a violent league, how is that enough when the structure of the game today continues to necessitate the programs that address all of those issues?  Would it not be easier to deal with the real problem, which is the fact that in the NHL there is a position that has essentially been created for players to fight one another? 

Many of these enforcers have acknowledged that they would not be in the NHL if not for this enforcer role.  While we may think that many of these men simply love fighting, that is often not the case; they might not be in the NHL if they weren’t the ones who threw the punches every night.  When we see the effects of this, such as concussions, depression, early onset dementia, an increased risk of alcoholism and drug abuse (both recreational and performance-enhancing), and potentially violence against women, I don’t see how we can continue to defend this practice.  I understand that these fights and hard hits are perceived as entertaining, and if the NHL is more entertaining then it might finally become popular in the South of the United States and potentially Mexico, but really: some things are more important than money.  Like, for example, the lives and wellbeing of hockey players and those who love them. 

Ron Tortellini, the fiery Italian-American, had this to say during a recent press conference: “Waldo Balek put his life into this team and into this league, and he couldn’t recover from the injuries and the fights and the lifestyle.  The league wasn’t there for him then, and they sure as hell weren’t there for him now.  It breaks my heart that his wife and daughters will have to pay the price.”  How long can this continue? How many more Waldo Baleks, Rick Rypiens, or Derek Boogards will there have to be before we say that enough is enough—that the practice of putting men on the ice to beat each other up is indefensible, and we as responsible citizens can no longer support this?  The NHL does not exist in isolation; what happens there affects hockey at every level.  What about people who never make it to the NHL, who sacrifice their bodies and their lives for a sport that will never support them professionally?  What about the millions of people—children included— who tune into ‘Hockey Night in Canada’ every week to watch yet another fight?  Why is it okay for these men to fight on the ice, but it would be against the law if they traded punches in a bar instead?  Professional hockey should no longer receive a get out of moral jail free card.  These players should not be held to different standards. 

The death of Waldo Balek is a tragedy, and one that must not be taken lightly as if it is an isolated incident.  If you want to dismiss this as just another attempt by a journalist to push their no-fighting agenda on the coattails of everyone’s heartbreak, be my guest.  I am woman who writes about sports; I’ve been called a lot worse.  But when you think about Waldo Balek, and remember who he was and the things that he has done for this city, please look a little deeper.  This is going to keep happening if we refuse to acknowledge the role that we all played in this tragedy.