Newly Signed Ottawa Senator sheds light on his role

The National Hockey League has seen its share of violent altercations throughout its years of existence. In fact, until fairly recently, fighting was an integral part of the sport. Much like every team has its star player nowadays, back then every organization also had its star enforcer whose role would essentially be to protect the team's more "valuable" players. But as the game gets increasingly faster and the players develop a bigger baggage of skill-sets, individuals who are idolized solely for defending their team's colors are becoming a rare bread. 

In an interview with Mike Commito on Thursday, newly acquired Ottawa Senator Nate thompson used competitor Matt Martin as a reference to explain how the role of enforcers has been evolving: 

“You look at a guy like he’s kind of the prototypical enforcer now. He’s a guy who will fight anybody but plays a lot of quality minutes and usually leads the league in hits every year. …That’s where I think the enforcer role is going."

He continued:

“You’re not going to see a guy who’s going to play two or three minutes, fight, and be done for the night. We’re in a time now in the league where coaches are using all four lines to win, so every guy has to be able to play.”

It is unclear whether Thompson's homage to Matt Martin may have something to do with the great bout both players shared in 2010:

Regardless, his perception of the role's evolution offers us insight into what the tasks of such a player actually are. It also further strengthens the idea that fights in hockey are here to stay, something that is certainly not going to gain  everyone's approval. It worth questioning whether the increase in speed and the decrease in physical altercations may be one of the explanatory factors as to why there seems to more violent injuries in today's NHL.