Friendly Hockey Thugs

On a hockey team, there are several traditional roles and jobs.  Besides the usual obvious roles of goalie, wing, center, etc., I have been informed (by several usually reliable sources) that there is also the "unofficial" role of enforcer. This is the player (or players) whose job it is to look out for any egregious infractions on the part of the opposing team, and retaliate appropriately, or in some cases inappropriately.  Generally speaking, with fists.  This is technically illegal, but extremely common, and has become more or less just part of the game.

The bit that's completely new to me, however, is the fact that most of these guys (at least at the professional level) are not actually mean, violent types.  They look at this as their job, their responsibility, and they do it dispassionately, and in many cases genially.  A recent interview with one player on the How to do Everything podcast reveals that many of them will bust a guy in the head, or get busted themselves, and then go out for beers after the game, congratulating each other on a particularly good hit.  "Oh, man, I wish I'd known you were a lefty!"