The Good Old Hockey Game

I simply love the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Of every major sport, hockey is far and away my favorite. I know I'm totally biased, growing up in Detroit, where the Red Wings all but dominated the league (and has since then). I moved to SoCal and watched the Anaheim Ducks win the Stanley Cup in '07, and watched as almost no one cared. In my eyes, everyone should care about hockey.

Think about this: hockey is more action-packed than baseball. Hockey isn't bogged down by timeouts, fouls, and free throws in the last few minutes like basketball. And unlike football, hockey doesn't have primadonnas on the scale of Terrell Owens or Chad Ocho Cinco, nor does it have outlandish end zone celebrations.

What it has instead are goals, saves, hits, grit, and gracefulness. Of course, hockey also has fighting, a few jerks (Sean Avery, anyone? He's a disgrace to the name of "Sean"!), some ugly incidents, and missing teeth. But on the whole, hockey players are quieter, more humble, and less obnoxious than your average athlete.

If you're the casual sports fan, you probably only hear about hockey when something really bad happens...someone's throat accidentally gets cut by someone's skate blade, a nasty fight leaves blood on the ice, a player loses his cool and brutalizes another, and so on. The truth is, ugly stuff happens just as often in the other sports, but hockey doesn't have the same exposure. That is, unless something bad happens.

You might also remember when Fox used to broadcast hockey games, with the Glow Puck and the weird CGI robots that showed up during the broadcast. You might remember who won the Stanley Cup this year or that.

Chances are, no matter whether you love or ignore hockey, you have almost certainly heard of the Stanley Cup.

I know the Cup pretty well; the Red Wings have won it 4 times in the last 12 years, more than any other team in that span. They have won more Cups than any other American team (Toronto has 12, Montreal 25). And, the way they draft, sign, and develop players, they are the model sports organization in any sport, bar-none.

Oh yeah, that's what I'm talkin' 'bout, Willis!

Every April, the hockey season ends, just before the NBA season concludes. This time every year, 16 teams from all over the continent gear up for the second season. Hockey players have spent their whole lives dreaming of winning it all, raising the Stanley Cup over their head, kissing it, drinking champagne from it...it's an obsession for them come springtime.

Far and away, the Stanley Cup is more revered than any other pro sports championship trophy. Even its fans will make a replica Cup out of cardboard, sheet metal, plastic containers...anything they can get their hands on, to carry it around at games or even their own living room. Not like I've ever done that...ahem...

If you can, find a hockey game to watch of listen to. It's a wonderful sport, and I say that not just because I'm biased. Hockey is far better than its reputation and popularity. Someday, it might even be bigger than some of those other sports. Not like I'm rooting for that. :)

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