Only slightly more violent than normal hockey.

They say that soccer is a gentleman’s game played by idiots, and that rugby is an idiot’s game played by gentlemen.

In hockey, it’s idiots all the way down. Every part of the sport screams of barbarism — from the blades on their skates, to the big wood sticks they carry around, to the fact that they will frequently get into real, physical punching matches on the ice, it’s no wonder that the sport doesn’t have the esteem of something like baseball.

At a recent game between Turkmenistan and Hong Kong, Turkmenistan’s forward Arslan Geldimyradov decided he wasn’t really feeling one of the other players. So, he waited until after the final buzzer, then punched him straight in the skull. To his shock, this act got him removed from the tournament.

You don’t say!

Disgusting sucker punch from Turkmenistan forward Arslan Geldimyradov on a Hong Kong player after the final buzzer.

Hong Kong won the game 5-1 to advance to the quarterfinals at the 2025 Asian Winter Games.

Geldimyradov finishes with 48 PIM in 3 games. pic.twitter.com/8XMp5szIeR

— Hockey Worldwide (@H0ckeyWorldwide) February 9, 2025