2008 All-Star Scrappers: The West

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 the players that have received a fighting major.
 
Today we take a look at some of those representing the Western 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. Tomorrow we’ll take a look at the East.
 
The All-Star game will be shown on Versus and CBC, Sunday at 6 PM EST. Versus is currently running an ad campaign on this site related to the broadcast.

Ryan Getzlaf

Getzlaf had an entertaining scrap earlier this year with the Minnesota Wild’s Nick Schultz. It was all Getzlaf in the beginning as he was able to overpower Schultz and land a number of uppercuts while Schultz was bent over. However Schultz came back towards the end with a flurry of lefts in this spirited scrap that has only fueled the current rivalry between the Ducks and Wild.

Jarome Iginla

Vincent Lecavalier and Jarome Iginla locked horns during a heat-of-the-moment battle during the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals. After battling along the boards, the two decided that they had enough of each other and dropped the gloves. Each held their own in the surprising battle that gained national attention.

Ed Jovanovski

The man they call “Jovocop” has been in many a scrap over the years. If anyone had any doubts that an aging Jovanovski was losing a step, he cast all doubts aside when he handled talented rookie and solid scrapper Aaron Voros earlier this season. The scrap was all Jovo from the start. He got off a flurry of seven unanswered rights before he landed another that sent Voros to the ice.

Duncan Keith

The first time all-star engaged in an eventful scrap against Russian Alexander Svitov last season. Keith showed courage going up against Svitov, who held a huge size advantage over his opponent. Svitov pumped away with rights throughout the fight. All Keith could do was try to duck away from the punches while Blackhawks color commentator Eddie Olczyk screamed for a teammate to come to the aid of Keith.

Rick Nash

The Blue Jackets’ leading scorer squared off against rugged defenseman Jim Vandermeer in an end-of-game scrap earlier this season while the game clock ran down. While Vandermeer may have landed and thrown more punches and earned himself a decision, Nash certainly held his own in surprising fashion.

Chris Osgood

Osgood engaged in one of the most infamous goalie fights in history against Patrick Roy during the famed Avalanche-Red Wings brawl in 1998. Amid the chaos that was going on around them, the two went toe-to-toe at center ice. Despite Roy being able to get in a flurry of rights in the middle of the fight, Osgood did well enough to be able to hold his own and earn the accolades of his home crowd.

Dion Phaneuf

Phaneuf took on veteran Bill Guerin in his first NHL fight a couple of seasons ago and came away with his first win as well. Phaneuf used a strength advantage to out-muscle Guerin and tie him up throughout the course of the fight, allowing Phaneuf to get a good amount of punches in.

Chris Pronger

Krys Barch and Pronger tied each other up during a scrum in a Stars-Ducks game last season. Barch continually tries to get Pronger to drop the gloves while a linesman tries to separate them. Finally Pronger decides to accept the challenge and drops his gloves, quickly throwing three rights while Barch ducks away from the shots. Pronger then wrestles Barch to the ice and the linesman jumps on top of the two, getting them sent on their separate ways rather easily.

Joe Thornton

A young Thornton engaged in his first NHL fight with the gritty Dave Scatchard. Scatchard nailed Thornton along the boards and knocked Thornton’s helmet off in the process. Thornton returned to his feet and challenged the veteran, who quickly obliged. To say that the former Hart Trophy winner held his own is an unstatement. Thornton went blow to blow with Scatchard before being ejected for not having his fight strap tied down.