That's it exactly - fighting on the ice is okay, fighting off the ice isn't. Like it or not, fighting's part of hockey. I find it interesting how so many sportswriters and commentators, who rarely pay any attention to hockey, have become experts on what penalties should have been handed down.
In fact, seeing hockey on every news outlet (not just sports-related outlets) every night and day all week is rather ironic. For years people have called for an end to fighting in hockey, based at least partially on the idea that making the sport less violent will make the sport more appetizing to the casual fan and thus result in more full-time fans coming in. This presumes, of course, that people don't actually like to see the violent aspect of professional hockey.
Fighting, not unlike doing the Tango, takes two. Point for those against fighting. However, fighting isn't just done for the crowds (who always seem to cheer for them, by the way). It's done to police the sport within the sport.
It's hard to say just how long fighting will remain in the NHL. It's so imbedded into the culture of the sport and those who run it, that it will either take a truly tragic event resulting from a fight within the rules of the game or a ton of outside pressure to remove fighting. Playing without fights has worked in every other league, so it probably wouldn't kill the NHL to follow suit. But for now, players will still police each other with fists when necessary.

  NHL legend Gordie Howe noted that brawling has always been an integral part of the sport. "When I scored," Howe recalled, "the crowd cheered, but when I dished out a good ass-kicking they went wild."
One can't help but remember what once was considered to be his trade-mark, the "Gordie Howe hat tick," in which he scored a goal, an assist and won a fight all in the the same contest.

  The National Hockey League Commissioner's office met last week to discuss, among other things, the escalating violence that mars their sport. After further investigation, though, it was determined that more, not less fighting, would increase the sport's popularity.