Bring Back the Bullies? Get Rid of the Helmets?

If the NHL really wants a U.S. network TV contract, they’d better go back and see what succeeded the last time they had one in the mid-’70s.

Then the best team was the Broad Street Bullies, the Philadelphia Flyers. Any game involving the Flyers usually featured several fights and possibly a bench-clearing brawl or two.

The network usually featured the Flyers, but when other teams were shown, the ratings dropped dramatically. Pure hockey is nice, but spicing it up with the rough stuff is like adding chocolate syrup and whipped cream to the vanilla ice cream.

Rather than banning fighting, the NHL should get rid of the third-man-in rule so that the McSorley types can protect the Gretzky types. To make the game even more attractive, get rid of the helmets so the players can be recognized as individuals again.

C.P. BENNETT

Ventura