Chaos erupted in the opening minutes of Wednesday night's tilt between the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals. Six fights took place in the first four minutes as the Rangers looked to exact revenge for Capitals forward Tom Wilson's antics during a scrum on Monday, which ultimately injured Rangers star Artemi Panarin. Wilson avoided suspension and was fined $5,000 for his actions.
The wild start sparked many in the hockey world to take to Twitter to share their thoughts on the madness:
"This is an absolute embarrassment to the sport," said everyone watching a game they'd otherwise ignore in order to see how the sport would be embarrassed.
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 5, 2021
Capitals vs Rangers
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) May 5, 2021
1st regular-season game in NHL history to feature 6 fights within the first 5 minutes of the game#ALLCAPS#NYR
No hockey just vibes pic.twitter.com/SkxRxbb1GA
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) May 5, 2021
First period at MSG ends with 20 penalties totaling 100 PIMs. There were 12 fighting majors and three 10-minute misconducts. And no goals.
— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) May 5, 2021
Not saying this is out of control but NBC just cut to a shot of the intermission panel and Patrick Sharp was fighting Jason Spezza.
— Down Goes Brown (@DownGoesBrown) May 5, 2021
I think it’s possible to recognize the multitude of angles here. Yeah it’s dumb, but I respect the Rangers players for it. No it doesn’t fix anything, but yes it’s entertaining. It’s dividing fans but it’s probably a galvanizing event in both dressing rooms.
— Justin Bourne (@jtbourne) May 5, 2021
Went to a fight and a hockey game broke out ?
— Meghan Chayka (@MeghanChayka) May 5, 2021
Great to see both teams answering the bell!! That’s why this game is the best... players police each other! #oldschool #hockey #NHL
— James Wisniewski (@jameswisniewski) May 5, 2021
Weird that no one’s even made eye contact with Chara…
— Japers’ Rink (@JapersRink) May 5, 2021
Six fights in 4:14. Twelve players punching each other instead of suspending ONE player for at least one game. All of this could have been avoided.
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) May 5, 2021
Send out the Capitals Twitter person to answer the bell.
— Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) May 5, 2021
Honest question, how many times does Wilson have to fight this game for the Rangers to feel content enough for this to be a hockey game again?
— Sean Shapiro (@seanshapiro) May 5, 2021
Live look at the action in MSG 👇 pic.twitter.com/ad7a6JJnor
— x - Jameson Olive (@JamesonCoop) May 5, 2021
I've watched a lot of games after a player wasn't suspended, and there's a team looking for frontier justice. That player gets jumped, they have their fight. Maybe he has another one later.
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 5, 2021
This isn't that. This is the Rangers adding a coda to their statement to the NHL.
Bottle service in the penalty box. Tom’s buying. https://t.co/TfVjQ4auHL
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 5, 2021
There are reports George Parros is at MSG for tonight’s game. If the league thought that would intimidate the players, make them behave themselves..then they lost the plot. In this case, the players lost their respect/trust in the D.O.P.S Agree or disagree, the fights say it all.
— Andi Petrillo (@AndiPetrillo) May 5, 2021
Say what you will about fighting in hockey. This is the first time this year that I tuned in for the Washington Capitals. I’m sure I’m not alone... That 1st period start was awesome.
— Marc Methot (@MarcMethot3) May 5, 2021