I have to agree with Angelo Giberti regarding fighting in hockey (letter, Feb. 13).

I am an avid sports fan, but have never understood hockey’s brutish behavior. It adds nothing to the outcome of the game — the team with the most goals still wins.

The explanation of “expending testosterone” is a useless excuse. Football is a much more physical game than hockey and, at the most, all you see is pushing and shoving. I recently watched the beginning of a Boston Bruins game. In the first four seconds of the game there were three fights. What does that prove?

Giberti is not an idiot, and I hope he doesn’t give up on hockey yet. Good college/high school games are fun to watch. They are fast-paced and relatively clean, with severe penalties for fighting (for the remainder of the particular game, as well as the next one). I have given up on Maineiacs and Pirates games for the same reason Giberti did.

Injuries are collateral damage in any sport; they don’t need to be added to by bullies who can’t control their behavior.

Intimidation is another poor excuse. Hockey has many talented players. A slick move, a graceful save, or beating a defenseman to score a goal should be more satisfying to a player than having the ability to punch someone’s lights out.

I have to thank Giberti; I thought I was the only one.

Dee Dumais, Auburn