September 25, 2002

Tough guys paid to tango

Pre-season is when youngsters look for a ticket to the big dance

By ED WILLES
Vancouver Sun

This time of year, when they're fighting for recognition, fighting for respect, but mostly just fighting, aspiring tough guys will recite the legend of Chris Tamer the way aspiring starlets recite the legend of Lana Turner.

Tamer, to the uninitiated, was a relatively unheralded Pittsburgh Penguins farmhand who was called up from the IHL in the mid-90s and soon found himself swapping knuckles with Chicago's Bob Probert.

Probert was then one of the most feared heavyweights in the league. Tamer, for his part, was not. But that all changed about the time a Tamer right connected with the point of Probert's jaw.

With that one fight, the blueliner made his reputation and his career. He also gained lasting immortality with all those trying to find their way in this most unusual of callings.

"It's a no-win situation for the established guys," said Canucks walk-on John Craighead, a forward with a fighter's dimension, when asked about the inevitable training camp battles between hopefuls and heavyweights.

"But it means a lot to the other guys. You go with a guy with a reputation, you land a lucky one and all of a sudden you're signing a big ticket."

Or picking up some of your favourite teeth.

"If the veterans didn't give me a chance when I came into the league, I wouldn't be in this position," said Edmonton's Georges Laraque, the acknowledged heavyweight champ of the NHL.

"Most of the time when a young guy comes up to you, you have to do the same thing. It's part of the job."

And part of the code. You don't have to explain either to Laraque.

Tuesday's preseason game between the Canucks and Oilers was, mercifully, devoid of the usual preseason elimination bouts which have little to do with the game and everything to do with making a name. True, Laraque and the Canucks' Mike Brown tussled in the first period but that had more to do with the Canucks' lacklustre effort than Brown's concern over his reputation.

"There's no point," Laraque reasoned before the game . "The team knows what I can do. His team knows what he can do.

"Mike's proven himself. We both know it's exhibition. I know he's not going to do anything out there. Donald [Brashear] might. [If you think that's a shot, you're right. Laraque and other heavyweights revile Brashear for his failure to adhere to the fighters' code.] But not Mike."

The same, however, cannot be said for a legion of wannabees who populate NHL camps this time of year.

The hockey archives are full of stories in which the up-and-comer approaches the established knucklehead and begs for a fight. It happened again during last weekend's exhibition tilt between Ottawa and Toronto. And, unlike Brashear, you can never accuse the Leafs' Tie Domi of not honouring the code.

During the game in question, the Sens' Wade Brookbank spent most of the evening trying to goad Domi into a scrap. Brookbank, who accumulated 337 PIMs in the minors last season, is auditioning for the job of Sens enforcer Chris Neil, who's out with a broken leg.

After some resistance, Domi gave the kid his chance.

"It's hard when he's in the same position I was as a young guy," Domi said. "I tried picking fights as a rookie but the veterans laughed at you."

"It depends who the guy is," said Laraque. "If he's close to making the team, you give him his shot. If it's just some guy who's not going anywhere, why bother."

Still, if the apprenticing thug really wants to test himself, there are foolproof ways of insuring a fight. This too is part of the code and it applies equally in the preseason and the regular season.

"If a guy really wants a shot at Domi just take a run at Mats Sundin," said Craighead. "Then you'll see the real Tie Domi. You'll learn about the job description in great detail."

And in this job, there's no substitute for first-hand experience.

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