Today, EA Sports’ “NHL 10″ hits the blue line with several new features, including heightened goalie perception, lots of easy-to-make trick shots, and better interaction between the digital fans and their players.

But all of that is just gravy. The real attraction this season: a first-person fighting engine. Now, players who control their team’s “enforcer” can throw down the gloves and sticks, grab and tug jerseys and start throwing punches just like the pros do.

It’s a good feature addition for kids, says former NHL player Trevor Linden, in an interview with the Canadian Press.

“Fighting in hockey is not something you necessarily want to promote, but at the same time, you want to make children understand that it is part of the game and in the right circumstances is necessary,” Linden was quoted as saying during a promotion for “NHL 10″ in Vancouver on Monday.

The fight engine turns buttons from game-playing controls to fight-management tools. Press buttons to throw punches, or jog the left thumbstick to dodge them. There’s even a “turtle mode” that lets players flatten out on the ice to avoid a tooth-jarring conflict.

As for realism, this fighting feature is “very cool,” said Linden, a 19-year NHL veteran who played mostly with the Canucks.

“It’s been part of the game for a very long time,” he said of the on-ice fisticuffs. “I think kids that are involved in the game learn to understand that as they grow and mature.”

So tell Game Guy what you think. Can the fighting in a hockey video game actually teach children how to deal with on-ice adversity in the real world?