George Parros Gets a Bad Rap
I read The Hockey News because it’s comprehensive coverage of the whole ice, from colleges to the women’s game to detailed stats on the NHL. Lately, though, the writing seems both repetitive and needlessly needling. Case in point: a set of articles in the April 3 issue that discuss fighting and the role of the goon.
George Parros gets a bad rap through all of this. Ken Campbell warns “..one of you…George Parros, Cam Janssen, and Wade Belak…is going to die in a hockey fight someday.” Brilliant. And Mike Brophy points out that if you add Colton Orr to that group, they have only 3 goals among them. Fascinating how they pick up the exact same group of “goons” for this analysis.
Aside from the lack of creativity in THN’s writing, their premise is flawed. Both articles want us to believe that there’s no room in hockey for players who can only fight. I won’t argue that, but why point at the players, with such vengeance as to warn that they might kill each other? Parros in particular was a stand out at Princeton, and can definitely score goals if he’s given the chance. With a shot percentage of over 8%, his conversion rate is better than that of the NJ Devils. The problem is that as a fourth liner, he doesn’t play much. When he is on the ice, he’s asked to be the tough guy. I’d prefer to see the Mike Rupp or Erik Rasmussen version of the fourth liner — guys who can skate and score, as well as mix it up when needed. Brophy would like us to believe that the problem is with players like Parros. Hardly. The problem is with coaches who don’t play a full four lines and develop young players. Typecast anyone, and you’ll get repetitive behavior.