Take your pick on what has become an endless debate with absolutely no clear winner on either side. Fighting has been part of the woof and warp of The Game since Eddie Shore beat up everybody until Muzz Patrick beat up Eddie Shore.

Fighting is good for hockey.

Fighting is bad for hockey.

Take your pick on what has become an endless debate with absolutely no clear winner on either side.

The bad parts are the stupid fights. Exhibit A was recently available during a Rangers-Islanders conflict followed by Pittsburgh-Buffalo.

New York Islanders captain Anders Lee torpedoed Blueshirts prospect Mac Hollowell with the kind of clean bodycheck that coaches only dream about. It was so clean, in fact, it already has been given The Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval.

There was only one problem. It did not meet Rangers Barclay Goodrow's seal of anything except anger; maybe even jealousy since Goody only wished that he threw the body not Lee.

As a result, Not-So-Goody Barclay dropped the gloves and challenged Lee leaving Cap'n Anders no choice but to fight back.

And that -- my fine, feathered friends -- is why fighting is bad -- as in dumb -- for hockey. A man delivers a pure check and for his reward he has to go two rounds with some pseudo heavyweight. Ergo: dumb and dumber.

The same nonsense was repeated by Sir Sidney Crosby when the Pitt captain watched Buffalo's Peyton Krebs level a Penguin with a sweetheart of a hit. The Penguins captain chased down Krebs and flailed a bit and that was that. 

Dumb and dumber.

In fact it was so dumb that Sid and Peyton sat in the penalty boxes laughing like third-graders. (Even dumber; Crosby later allowed that he thinks he went after the wrong guy.

Ah, but there's a loyal opposition. My old buddy Brian Burke put it simply. "The physicality of the game is important and we've never lost that."

Facts are facts. Fighting has been part of the woof and warp of The Game since Eddie Shore beat up everybody until Muzz Patrick beat up Eddie Shore.

Please! Please! Don't tell me that was in the Neaderthal days because it still holds.

That's why the Washington Capitals love Tom Wilson and the Maple Leafs are paying millions for snowshoeing Ryan Reaves who'd love nothing better than going one-on-one with Toronto's CN Tower.

Just for the heck of it, I asked an Islanders season ticket holder about what the NHL discreetly calls fisticuffs. The man speaks for millions when he says. "Fighting allows players to police themselves and not let things get out of hand. Without fighting, there'd be way more cheap shots."

A rather sophisticated type put it another way: "Hockey is about heart and grit. It's about putting everything on the line for your team. And sometimes that means dropping the gloves."

Fair enough but the other side that claims fighting is not good for the brains. Fist-tossing is not allowed in the collegiate ranks, international hockey and the Quebec Major Junior League has banned fighting altogether.

Which proves you can go completely nuts debating this issue. Matter of fact, I know a hockey guy who has the answer. This fella has played the game in every form from ice to street to floor hockey.

"Should the NHL allow fighting?" he asks and then replies, "the answer is more complicated than NASA's plans for their average rocket launch. You cannot ban fighting unless it's part of a larger overhaul of the game."

His three points are: 1. Fighting should be eliminated in video games; 2. NHL rinks should be expanded to Olympic sizes. 3. Have a third referee who watches the game after it ends and let him issue fines.

He concludes: "Mike Bossy famously claimed he had no use for fighting. Make my trio of sweeping changes and The Boss's wish can finally happen."

Enough already with the delirious debate. This much is certain: Players are bigger than ever and skate faster than ever and collide harder than ever. They punch harder, too.

So, YOU tell me; should fighting be allowed?

Barclay Goodrow certainly thinks so and, I suspect, so does the players' union.

As for The Maven; I love a good fight -- I saw one of the best heavyweight bouts of all-time -- Detroit's Gordie Howe vs. Lou Fontinato of the Rangers. Howe won!

P.S. The Howe-Fontinato fight took place 64 years ago; but was so exciting we're still talking about it!

I'M JUST SAYIN'

* I remember John MacLean when his kid, Kyle, was knee-high to a grasshopper. Now the lad is an aspiring pro in the Islanders' system.

* The oddity here is that Johnny Mac goes down as one of the all-time Devils heroes, playing under Lou Lamoriello.

* A year ago Auston Matthews was picked the second best NHLer by the Hockey News Yearbook. This year it's Cale Makar.

* Nix to that, says The Maven, I go with Auston Matthews who THN has relegated to fifth.

* How about this for a plunge. A year ago Johnny Gaudreau was listed sixth best. This term he didn't even make top 50. (Can't blame Mike Babcock for that.)

* Anaheim's Troy Terry is a favorite of mine but not the way you think:

* Troy, New York, home of RPI Field House, is one of my fave towns; 2. Terry and The Pirates once was my fave cartoon.

* THN's Future Watch has a nifty Logan Cooley quote about playing for the U of Minnesota: "One thing was just how many fans come to the game, game after game."

* Yes! There's a new "Ed Westfall Arena" at Long Island's Town of Wading River.

* The Isles proudly agreed to name the rink built by the Peconic Hockey Foundation. (And thanks to Troy Albert for giving me a heads-up on this.)

* It was kept a secret from #18 with only Isles co-owner Jon Ledecky and Troy Albert knowing about the rink's unveiling this past Tuesday.

MAGNIFICENT MIKE, HIS 500TH AND 501ST

Over the weekend WHL powerhouse Portland Winterhawks beat Everett, 4-1, in the Rose City's home opener.

It was the monumental 500th victory for Hawks GM-coach Mike Johnston and underlines his position as one of the foremost executive coach-managers in puck history. With that in mind I checked in with the master about his storied career:

* REMEMBERING HIS FIRST WIN

"I took over at a time when the team was sold. The club had only two wins in its first 13 games. I clearly remember our first game in Tri-City on October 31st against a very good team and winning 4-1 on three third period goals. We went on to win five of our first six games. But my associates -- Travis Green and Kyle Gustafson -- knew that if we wanted long-term success, we were going to have to address our culture and our identity."

* THE SIX BUILDING BLOCKS: "It began with how we trained; then the importance of school followed by practice habits. Then came player development, professionalism and, finally, care for the players off the ice."