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What: “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel”

Where: HBO

When: Tuesday, 10-11 p.m.

It’s Stanley Cup playoff time, so it is appropriate for “Real Sports” to have a hockey story in this month’s show. The topic is hockey goons. The question is why? A look at the bankrupt Pittsburgh Penguins or an inspection of the NHL as it struggles to gain mainstream popularity would seem more fitting.

But a feature on goons allows HBO to show footage of one brutal fight after another and justify doing it. It’s similar to criticizing Sports Illustrated for its swimsuit issue so you can justify showing semi-nude models on the air.

Enforcers Tony Twist of the St. Louis Blues and Stu Grimson of the Mighty Ducks are featured. Both sat down with reporter Armen Keteyian, who recently won a Sports Emmy for a piece last year on the financing of Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix. Keteyian does a fine job on this story too, for what it is. Gee, there is fighting in hockey. Gee, the league doesn’t care. This isn’t stop-the-presses stuff.

The most profound aspect of the segment is when Grimson, a born-again Christian, talks about Jesus and fighting on the ice. Of Jesus, Grimson says, “He would not be shy about taking off his gloves to defend a teammate.”

It is pointed out that Grimson was acquired by the Mighty Ducks to protect the stars on the team--Paul Kariya in particular. The season before Grimson arrived, Kariya was sidelined for the season by Gary Suter, then of the Chicago Blackhawks. Last season, with Grimson, Kariya stayed healthy.

Grimson, who is shown roughing up a referee, talks about how he used to have a tough time dealing with his role. “Now I accept it,” he says.

The other three segments in this edition of “Real Sports” are typically excellent. Jim Lampley and producer Cindy Babski tackle the important topic of sports riots. They dissect the riot that took place this year in East Lansing, Mich., after Michigan State lost to Duke in the Final Four to find out why these riots occur and how they might be prevented.

Correspondent Bernard Goldberg takes a look at boxer Elvir Muriqi, tabbed the Kosovo Kid. Muriqi, a Golden Gloves champion who is undefeated as a pro, emigrated with his family from the Balkans three years ago, but his father and 16-year-old sister have returned to Albania to join the Kosovo Liberation Army.

The final segment begins with Mary Carillo interviewing extreme skier Matthew Bogue, who is legally blind because of multiple sclerosis. But the segment is more about former Olympic skier Jimmie Heuga and his work with victims of MS. Heuga was diagnosed with MS in 1970.