I bet that rule change would instantly reduce the number of fights. I think if hockey really wanted to drop fighting, they would've already put in some tougher rules. I love hockey and have no problem at all with the fighting. When a sports whole competitive culture is based around cheap shots, does it really deserve to be seen as a legitimate sport? The whole competitive culture is based on cheap shots? That's a rather broad statement. Sure, there are cheap shots, but it's not the basis of the game. It's a very physical game to begin with and most of the hitting is legal. You'll have your certain players who do play dirty though.