Pittsburgh
Sports Report October 2004 |
 |
| PSR
Showdown
I could, if pressed, conduct some actual research to support my contention that the NHL is unwatchable - at least in the regular season - but I'd rather let my opponent do the work for me. Mark Madden wrote a terrific column in the Feb. 15, 2003 edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The headline: 'NHL Won't Admit Its Game Stinks.' Madden pointed out the following: In the 1980s, when the NHL was enjoying its high-scoring heyday, there were 21 teams. There was an average of 8.03 goals per game in 1981-82. The lowest point total for a scoring champion in the '80s was 137. Calgary's Jarome Iginla did the trick last year with 96. Precisely. And Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis did the trick in 2003-04 with 94. Madden continued: If you watch hockey, and especially if you love the game hockey is supposed to be, you know that the caliber of play in the NHL has never been worse and never been executed with less of an eye toward entertainment. Couldn't have said it better myself. Still don't understand why the NHL won't do crowd-pleasing shootouts, either. Furthermore, Madden wrote: NHL hockey stinks. Not only has expansion diluted the level of play, but a too-long schedule has eroded the intensity. You want to see hard-nosed hockey? Watch Division I college. That's about the only place hockey players give 110 percent every night, and it's because they only play twice a week. The spirit is willing when it comes to NHL players. The crowded schedule just beats them up. Indeed - and he might have added that ticket prices are plain silly. Did you know the average ticket costs $43.57? Sorry to interrupt. Madden concluded thusly: Hockey is a great game. To me, it's the best. But the NHL is a thoroughly backward organization run and refereed by idiots. If you don't watch it, I don't blame you. If Mario Lemieux doesn't play in it, I won't blame him. If the Penguins fold or leave, I'll miss them dearly. But I won't miss the version of hockey the NHL sells. Neither will I. Yes,
It's Still The Best Dumb question, especially given that there won't be any NHL games played today. Or tomorrow. Or next month. Despite NHL hockey's flaws Ð bad refereeing, trapping, dilution of talent, clutching and grabbing, Neanderthal acceptance of fighting Ð it's still better than anything else. It's one of the few sports that still have spontaneous creativity. No playbook. No endless series of stops and starts. When you watch a hockey game, there's a chance you might see something you've never witnessed before. Since the NHL plays the highest level of hockey, that's the game for me. Sure, sometimes they dump and chase in the NHL. But sometimes Ilya Kovalchuk skates the puck through the neutral zone. I hate it when lesser players hook and hold the stars. But sometimes there's an odd-man break led by Mario Lemieux. Yeah, the goalie equipment is too big. But sometimes Martin Brodeur just gets the butt-end of his stick on the puck. The bad things about hockey don't negate the good things. And the good things don't get mentioned often enough. NHL hockey is played by relatively normal people. You don't have to be a Ôroided-up 300-pound gargantuan or a 6-foot-9 freak. NHL players are most often decent people, as opposed to baseball players. As Beano Cook once said, 'I would rather associate with Nazi war criminals than with major-league baseball players.' I believe Beano did time in Stalag 13. Is NHL hockey as fast as it should be? No. But it's still the fastest game on earth. Does hockey sabotage itself by ignoring its own rulebook? Sure. But in football, you could call holding on every play. I'm not a believer that popularity indicates quality. Milli Vanilli went platinum, after all. Our country's massive interest in football tells me one thing: God must love morons, because he made so many. Hockey is the greatest game ever. If the NHL doesn't come back for 10 years, and does so with only four teams, I'll still watch. Problem is, I may be the only one. |
| Copyright © 1997-2005 Pittsburgh Sports Report [PSR] |