I'm not in the habit of taking multiplayer's gameplay mechanics as canon.

: That said, I had a similar reaction when I read the part about
: trying to pry open a door with one. Cutting through it, sure, I'll buy
: that, but I just had a ridiculous vision of him using the thing like a
: crowbar.

That was just... *shrugs*

Every Halo writer has their quirks. Karen Traviss seemed to think that plasma torpedoes are a mechanical missile that can be intercepted, Peter David seems to think that Energy Blades operate on the same principles as the Jackal Shield Gauntlet and rely on a purely mechanical cutting principle.