A strange thing happens when you spend a lot of time around lawyers -- you start to think like one.

This, in itself, is not a bad thing. The vast majority of lawyers I have met are intelligent, forward-thinking, heady people. But there is a certain common mentality among them, namely, they tend to look at situations from every angle, examining a scenario and finding ways to make it work for their client, even if there is no client and it is a hypothetical discussion.

This brings me to yesterday. I had the chance to break bread with two of who I would consider to be the nicest attorneys in Western New York.

At one point during lunch, in between bites of a tasty Panini sandwich, the talk turned to our beloved Buffalo Sabres, and subsequently to Sabres forward Patrick Kaleta and his physical style of hockey.

The discussion centered on the four-game suspension Kaleta received for a hit earlier in the season, and I suddenly had a very-lawyer-like idea.

One of my lunch companions pointed out that Kaleta was fined $20,000 for the hit (Fox Sports calculated the lost salary at $19,621 for the four games).

That may seem like chump change when you compare it to NFL linebacker James Harrison coughing up $125,000 in fines last season or losing an entire game check this season for what was deemed to be a dirty hit on Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy. But $20 grand is still $20 grand and Kaleta is far from being a multi-millionaire player, so, the lawyer in me came up with a concept.

I think Kaleta (and Harrison) should be able to count their fines as tax-deductible business expenses. Don't laugh, bear with me on this.

Kaleta signed a contract in 2010 that pays him $955,000 this season. He brings a lot to his hometown team in the way of a great locker room presence, a local kid who made good, an invaluable asset in the community and a guy who can find the back of the net from time to time. But if you asked most fans why Kaleta is such a big part of this team, they would point to his physical play. He is an enforcer, a fighter.

If you need evidence, take a visit to You Tube and type in "Kaleta fight," pop a bowl of corn and enjoy.

So, my lawyerly argument goes something like this: If Kaleta is paid a handsome salary, in large part because of his physical style of play, then doesn't it make sense that when he engages in a physical act on the ice, it is a cost of doing what he is paid to do, thus becoming a business expense?

My lunch mates weren't buying into my argument, so I had to dig a little deeper.

I offered up the case of an exotic dancer who sought to write-off her breast implants as a business expense. The case went to court and a (female) judge ruled the implants were a legitimate deduction because they were part of how she earned her living.

Before you think this was nothing more than a cheap way for me to talk about breasts in my blog, stay with me. Breast implants are to an exotic dancer what fists are to a hockey player paid to be an enforcer. If the dancer loses income without the enhancement, Kaleta loses money without his physical play.

I paused at this point, expecting my attorney friend to smile, pat me on the back and offer to hire me to be his personal legal consultant. Alas, this did not happen. Instead, he told me he doubted I could find a tax attorney that would back me on this.

Undaunted, I returned to the office and began to do research (most of which did not involve exotic dancers).

If Harrison, for example, lost what is estimated to be more than $300,000 in fines during his NFL career, and he is in the 35 percent tax bracket, I could save him some serious cash. The same thing goes for Kaleta.

Now of course this wouldn't apply to every fine ever issued. New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott's wallet will be $10K lighter after he was fined for giving members of the media the middle finger salute during locker clean-out day at the stadium. This of course would not be a tax-deductible fine because being a jerk isn't part of his job responsibilities on the Jets. They leave that to head coach Rex Ryan.

The point is, I think I am onto something here. If lawyers can sue because an obese man can't fit into a fast-food booth, if a kidnapper can sue his victims for not helping him escape and if a child can sue his mother for not sending gifts often enough, then I say a good tax attorney can save Patrick Kaleta some green when he files his next tax return.

As for me, since my company doesn't pay me to fight, punching out someone who irritates me and writing off the financial loss isn't likely to happen. But, one could certainly make the case that, if my blog is any indication, they pay me to be a jerk. So, unlike Bart Scott, maybe I can get away with offering up the one-finger-wave. Then again, maybe not.