Thornton Shows True Teammate Mentality

Fighting has been on the decline in the NHL recently, much to the delight of many of my peers in the media. But take a look at some of the action from last night and you’ll see why the players almost universally have a different opinion.

First, let’s head to Florida, where the surprising Panthers were down 4-1 to the traditionally bruising Bruins. Boston defenseman Adam McQuaid roughs up youngster Quinton Howden, prompting this reaction from Florida enforcer Shawn Thornton:

From that point on, the Cats came back. Florida would lose to Boston 5-4 in overtime, but for a team that had been owned by the Bruins, the Panthers at least made a statement that they would not roll over (and they got a point, denying the B’s second place in the division outright).

Now, I’m sure the Vocal Minority (see what I did there?) will argue that turning the other cheek would have been better for Florida – after all, McQuaid was getting a penalty anyway; Thornton’s two-minute instigator just nullified an offensive opportunity – but that didn’t happen. The comeback did, starting less than two minutes later. As the Boston Herald‘s Steve Conroy noted, “the fight put a buzz in the building,” and Florida out-shot Boston 18-5 in the period.