Women’s hockey brawl sets NCAA penalty minutes, DQ records (Video)
“We have a little extracurricular activity,” proclaimed the play-by-play guy* at the end of the Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Bemidji State Beavers** women’s hockey game on Friday night. Little did he realize he was about to witness NCAA history made and records fall.
Check out the postgame brawl that resulted in 18 game disqualifications:
Via USCHO.com (s/t Deadspin), a review of the carnage:
A postgame brawl led to 18 fighting majors and accompanying game disqualifications — nine to each team. Another major and game DQ was issued for grabbing the face mask, and one minor for instigating was added for good measure. Add it up and you have 287 penalty minutes dished out at the 20-minute mark of the third period of the Beavers’ 3-2 victory.
The 303 penalty minutes for the game shattered the NCAA record for penalty minutes in a college hockey game, men or women, Division I or Division III. The all-levels, both-genders record had been 268 penalty minutes racked up by Boston University and Maine on Jan. 24, 2004.
The record for a Division I women’s game was 83, set by Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth on Dec. 14, 2003.
That’s after just 16 PIMs between the teams in the previous 60 minutes of play!
So what the heck happened to spark this?
“I don’t really know what happened, to be quite honest,” said Buckeyes coach Nate Handrahan*** said (via this video).
“All I know is there were players taking liberties with our players,” he said. “There was some chippy-ness throughout the course of the game. I’ve got to believe that our players, and as a staff, as a program, we’re not happy with teams celebrating on our ice surface and going off the ice yipping and hooting and hollering.
“What happened at the end of the game doesn’t happen often in women’s hockey.
“But I can tell you this: We’re happy to at least see our girls show some fight and some spirit. Outside of that, you know, I think hockey in general is trying to get that stuff out of the game. We have our own issues to deal with, so …”
The fallout continued in the following game, which was Saturday night between the Buckeyes and Beavers. Because of the DQs, both squads dressed just six forwards and four defenseman. Naturally, the game went to overtime and then a shootout, as the Hockey Gods decided to give the teams a de facto Herb Brooks practice. (Whistle … AGAIN!)
Eh, such is the price of the line brawl, But at the very least, we hope some of these players passed their entrance exam for Fight Club, er, we mean the U.S. and Canadian women’s national team programs.
* Are there women play-by-play voices in NCAA women’s hockey? I’d hope so. Then again, it’s the single most gender-biased position in sports media, outside of studio analyst.
** Not a word out of any of you. NOT. A. WORD.
*** This is so close to Hanrahan, which would have been “Slap Shot” tie-in perfection.
