2008 All-Star Scrappers: The East

With All-Star weekend upon us, we here at hockeyfights.com thought it would be pretty sweet if we took a glance at some of the notable scraps this seasons’s participants have been in. We know that not every All-Star has been in a fight over the course of their career so we’ve done our homework and singled out some of the players that have received a fighting major.

Today we take a look at some of those representing the Eastern Conference. Each player is listed in alphabetical order. Along with a description of a fight they’ve been in, you can also find a link to a clip of that fight included as well. Yesterday we looked at the West.

The All-Star game will be shown on Versus and CBC, today at 6 PM EST. Versus is currently running an ad campaign on this site related to the broadcast.

Brian Campbell

Campbell fought R.J. Umberger in a date that went back to the 2005-06 playoffs where Campbell knocked Umberger out with a big-time open-ice hit. Umberger didn’t forget and went out of his way to challenge Campbell in an attempt to avenge the hit. Umberger finally got Campbell to drop them once Umberger grabbed ahold of him and then proceeded to earn a unanimous decision over his counterpart.

Zdeno Chara

One of the fights that has gotten the most mainstream coverage this year has to be Chara’s scrap against Blackhawks enforcer David Koci back in October. Chara overcame a near knockdown to pepper Koci with rights and cause a cut so big that Koci’s entire face was covered in blood by the time he started to skate back to the dressing room.

Sidney Crosby

The Kid’s first NHL scrap was against Andrew Ference and he did pretty well. Crosby gets Ference bent over and tries to pull his jersey over his head. Ference throws an overhand right and Crosby responds with two quick rights. Ference fires back with a right of his own and then throws another to the back of Crosby’s helmet just before they fall to the ice. Ference skates to the penalty box with a cut on the top of his head.

Rick DiPietro

During a line brawl between the Rangers and Islanders earlier this season, DiPietro decided to go after Jason Strudwick, causing Ranger goaltender Al Montoya to come down and grab DiPietro. It turned out to be a bad decision by Montoya as DiPietro tagged him with three quick lefts, causing Montoya to take the fight to the ice. Unfortunately for Montoya, DiPietro continued to throw left hands while they were down until the linesmen were able to grab them.

Dany Heatley

While Zdeno Chara and Vincent Lecavalier dance, Heatley and Nolan Pratt grab each other and drop the gloves during a Lightning-Senators affair in 2005-06. Pratt throws two rights to the back of Heatley’s head while Heatley struggles to get free. Heatley attempts an overhand right, allowing Pratt to return fire and connect with a right that lands just below Heatley’s visor. The two then exchange rights before they tire out and let referee Eric Furlatt come in.

Vincent Lecavalier

(See Jarome Iginla)

Alexander Ovechkin

Ovechkin didn’t mount any offense at all in his first regular season NHL scrap against Paul Gaustad. After injuring Daniel Briere with a hit along the boards, Ovechkin is grabbed by Gaustad, who throws two rights before everyone else on the ice jumps in. Ovechkin never even dropped his gloves but still received a fighting major.

Mike Richards

Richards and Paul Mara engaged in a marathon scrap that began with an emphatic tossing of the gloves by Richards that attracted a rise out of the crowd. The two went back and forth along the boards, each getting their fair share of shots in. The bigger Mara may have gotten a few more shots in than Richards but it was visible that both were able to hold their own when it came to the rough stuff.

Eric Staal

Right after Staal and Jeff Halpern take a faceoff during a Canes-Caps game in 2005-06, Staal gives Halpern a slash, letting him know that he wants to go. Halpern turns around and they get their sticks up, shove each other, and drop the gloves. Halpern connects with a right that knocks Staal’s helmet off before throwing him to the ice. Staal returns to his feet and Halpern lands three more rights with the linesmen close by. Halpern misses with an overhand right, allowing Staal to push Halpern to the ice. The linesmen come in shortly after.

Tomas Vokoun

During an end-of-game line brawl between the Sharks and Predators back in 2003-04, Vokoun and Miikka Kiprusoff found each other. After taking off each other’s masks, their fight was almost interrupted by a rush of players trying to get after the opposing team’s goalie. The two moved away from the pack and engaged in a pretty even fight for the most part.