"It Was Fun": Red Wings Emmitt Finnie Looks Back On Unofficial 1st NHL Fight

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Late in the second period of Tuesday's game against divisional rival Ottawa, several Detroit Red Wings players dropped the gloves, including Alex DeBrincat and Ben Chiarot. 

Second-year forward Emmitt Finnie squared off with the Senators' Jordan Spence and came away with a decisive takedown. However, there's one catch: the fight didn't officially count as Finnie's first NHL bout.

Despite picking up a decisive win in the fight, it was never recorded on the scoresheet, and he wasn't penalized. 

“No fights (before), that was my first fight last game," Finnie said following Detroit's practice session on Thursday. “I was talking about it afterward; it’s amazing I didn’t get a penalty. I guess all the refs were a little preoccupied.”

"I didn't think it would escalate the way it did, it was pretty fun,” Finnie continued. “The adrenaline was definitely going pretty high after that. I’ve always talked about wanting to get into a fight, and my brother, he's more of a fighter. I've seen him fight growing up, so I told him I was looking for one." 

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Finnie said that his brother Marshall, who plays at Niagara University, was admittedly jealous that he's able to drop the gloves as opposed to him, since it's against collegiate rules. 

"He liked it," Emmitt said of Marshall's reaction to his unofficial fight. "He's playing college right now, and he can't fight; he said he was a little jealous that I get to fight and he can't."

Head coach Todd McLellan said the game has changed significantly since his playing days and that he appreciates players being able to police themselves.

"I’m glad the players can police themselves," McLellan said. "It’s a contact game. Guys get angry at each other. You’re going to see it. Emotions are high. That was an emotional game for a lot of different reasons. So that happens.” 

Finnie is playing in his second NHL campaign, and has one goal with five shots in three games played thus far; he appeared in all 82 regular season games in 2025-26, scoring 13 goals with 17 assists. 

The Red Wings are back in action on Friday evening against the Seattle Kraken. 

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