Chris Nilan has always been a stand-up guy. Met him once and he was more than generous to give me a few minutes of his day to chat with me. Really cool guy.
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"CS is one of my favorite people on this entire site." - ColePens
I think in hockey its part of the deal if you wanna play in the NHL. I hardly consider bullying a kid and intimidating an adult to be the same.
I would be willing to bet 99% of the 'tough guys' in hockey, at any level, were bullies. We all knew the 'tough' hockey player growing up, most were complete douches and bullies to kids in school. I think it goes hand in hand for the most part.
I would be willing to bet 99% of the 'tough guys' in hockey, at any level, were bullies. We all knew the 'tough' hockey player growing up, most were complete douches and bullies to kids in school. I think it goes hand in hand for the most part.
So that automatically makes Nilan a bully?
Also, most of tough guys weren't tough guys growing up in the hockey world. If they made the NHL, they had to dominant in midget to get drafted in the CHL. Same thing for NHL, they had to have some talent to be drafted.
Also, most of tough guys weren't tough guys growing up in the hockey world. If they made the NHL, they had to dominant in midget to get drafted in the CHL. Same thing for NHL, they had to have some talent to be drafted.
I don't know about "most", but you should make a list for yourself of who you consider some of the top "tough guys" from the last 30 years or so, and check out their minor league histories for yourself. Seems to me that most of the guys from Nilan, to Probert, Ray, Odjick, Grimson, Peluso, Berube, Marchment, May, Simon, McSorley, Buchberger, Chase, Manson, Laraque, Shelley, Boogaard, Neil, etc, etc, etc, filled the tough guy/fighting role on their minor league teams long before joining the NHL.
edit: not that it defines them as "bullies", though.
Last edited by Ohashi_Jouzu: 05-13-2012 at 01:02 PM.
c'mon chris, you made a career out of being a bully .... applaud the cause, but a little hypocritical aren't we?
Quote:
Is it a contradiction to have a former National Hockey League enforcer giving anti-bullying speeches to kids?
None “whatsoever” said Nilan, who racked up 3,043 penalty minutes in 688 career NHL games – an average of 4.4 minutes per game.
“What I did in hockey was basically stick up for my teammates,” he told Branswell. “What is done on the ice and in hockey is a totally different environment than going to school.”
Nilan added that he was never a bully as a kid.
“I was someone who defended other kids, and it was just the way I played hockey, too.”
Sticking up for teammates does not equal bullying. Intimidating grown men in the sport of hockey for the protection of your team probably shows the opposite characteristics of bullying which is usually done by cowards.
Want me to find some clips of Nilan contradicting himself, and beating on someone, when not defending a teammate? C'mon now, lumping all his poundings into, 'sticking up for his teammates' is the ultimate cop out.
Want me to find some clips of Nilan contradicting himself, and beating on someone, when not defending a teammate? C'mon now, lumping all his poundings into, 'sticking up for his teammates' is the ultimate cop out.
If anything I don't see the difference. You could do something and change your mind about it later.
c'mon chris, you made a career out of being a bully .... applaud the cause, but a little hypocritical aren't we?
I would be willing to bet 99% of the 'tough guys' in hockey, at any level, were bullies. We all knew the 'tough' hockey player growing up, most were complete douches and bullies to kids in school. I think it goes hand in hand for the most part.
What does it matter? He's spending time to defend a good cause.
How dare you criticize him as an hypocrit anyways, 99% of all people have acted like hypocrites and douches at least once when they were kids.
Nilan never was a bully, he made it clear that he was out there to help and protect his teammates, but he never went and bullied people himself. Very decent man, saw him in an interview on Tout Le Monde En Parle, you can tell how classy he is.
Want me to find some clips of Nilan contradicting himself, and beating on someone, when not defending a teammate? C'mon now, lumping all his poundings into, 'sticking up for his teammates' is the ultimate cop out.
wow, this took around 30 seconds to go down memory lane.. BTW, Nilan was one of my favorite he was one of my favorite habs ever, so I'm not bashing him... just the hypocracy.
How can anyone say he was just 'defending his team' for the majority of his fights? He picked them almost every night, whether the other player wanted it, or not. He was a bully on the ice, and I loved him for that.
Here's Chris inciting a riot in the classic Boston/Montreal game
Here's Nilan taking it into the locker room with Fraser, you know.. because Chris was so honorable all the time... not a bully in any way..
I was really expecting Nilan going around to schools and just beating the **** out of bullys, that sends a message.
Haha. Today's lesson: "no matter how much bigger you are than someone else, know that there may be someone else even bigger around the corner judging you."
wow, this took around 30 seconds to go down memory lane.. BTW, Nilan was one of my favorite he was one of my favorite habs ever, so I'm not bashing him... just the hypocracy.
How can anyone say he was just 'defending his team' for the majority of his fights? He picked them almost every night, whether the other player wanted it, or not. He was a bully on the ice, and I loved him for that.
Here's Chris inciting a riot in the classic Boston/Montreal game
Here's Nilan taking it into the locker room with Fraser, you know.. because Chris was so honorable all the time... not a bully in any way..
Nilan throwing a puck at Baxter, beating on him
In the second clip, did you see Patrick Roy going down the tunnel and get into the middle of it to help Nilan?
Damn, love the intensity and passion of Roy and he is exactly what this franchise needs.
Oh, and I disagree with you on this thread but thanks for posting up those old videos. Brings back some great memories.
