Yeah, Flint, I grew up playing pond hockey; my mom even sent me to hockey camp one year (4:00 am to get some ice time at the rink). Big Bad Bruins of the early 70s. Bobby Orr, Gerry Cheevers, Phil Esposito.
I would hope, however, that the true goal for hockey is to get the puck in the net, not to knock the players out. Though the classic hockey fight does not seem to go away, to the delight of many.