Hockey - The most Game
I became a hockey fan in 1963. I watched my first game at a friend's house as a freshman in high school. He was a Chicago Black Hawks fan. I was always an avid baseball and football fan but hockey was different. It was like a tug of war. At times, momentum would shift from dinky to minute. Other times a team would operate the other and dominate them for entire periods. The players had different combinations of talent and toughness.
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Like other sports of the era, many players were on the same team for their entire career. Just name the player and his image will come to mind in their team uniform. This was the old six team Nhl. The Chicago Black Hawks, New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Montreal Canadiens. I became a Toronto fan. The Maple Leafs were the center point for the Hockey Night In Canada telecasts. All the teams had proud and long traditions. Each had star scoring players, top goalies, great defensemen, and at least one enforcer.
My favorite player was Frank Mahovlich. I got such a kick out of finding him skate just over the blue line, winding up with a slap shot, and rocketing the puck like it was shot out of a cannon past the goalie. I thought, wow so many players go through all that dipsy doodle and here this guy just blasts that thing. The Leafs got into a covenant dispute with The Big M and the Chicago Black Hawks offered the Leafs one million dollars for Mahovlich. The Leafs first agreed and then refused. A year after the Leafs won their last Stanley Cup in 1967 they traded him to the Red Wings. This is why I think the Leafs (who have not won a Cup since) are under "The Curse of Frank Mahovlich". Of course I became a Red Wings fan instantly and then in 1971, a Montreal Canadiens fan as the Big M was traded again. Mahovlich won six Stanley Cups. Bobby Hull of the Black Hawks was most similar to Mahovlich with the slap shot and of course Boom Boom Geoffrion of the Canadiens perfected the slap shot and was the second player in Nhl history to score 50 goals in a season.
In 1968, the Nhl added the Pittsburg Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, St. Louis Blues, Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, and the Oakland Seals. In 1970, dreams came true here in Buffalo, Ny as the Buffalo Sabres became members of the Nhl. In 1974 the Philadelphia Flyers became the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup. The Montreal Canadiens then wheeled off four Stanley Cups in a row just to show who was in effect boss. The Canada Cup Series and the Olympics created some of the most games in history.
Today hockey has 30 teams. The lack of a major Tv covenant hold the sport back from gaining the popularity it deserves. Three teams are in California, two teams are in Florida, and one in Georgia, Texas, Carolina, and Arizona. The sport is starting to cross racial barriers and world wide popularity is booming. They have many great players and stars led by Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby.
I say if the sport was presented in its traditional form, it would blossom in America. Get rid of the fighting instigator penalty. Hockey's superstars were protected in the old Nhl by one, two, or three players on each team who would beat your brains out if you put a cheap hit, slash, spear, or punch to one of the teams best skaters. It added to the drama of the game. Today, open ice "legal" checks are causing more concussions and occupation ending injuries than ever. If person delivered one of these "legal" checks in the old Nhl, they would pay dearly by getting punched out on several occasions. Goalies are allowed to skate and pass all over the place. I say if you step out of the crease with the puck, you are fair game. I like the two line pass rule.
Breakaways are fun to watch. Get rid of that crazy shootout. Let them go 5 minutes with 4 on 4 play, and then 3 on 3 play. A tie after that would not be a sin and should be allowed. I swear the Nhl leadership is listening to soccer moms instead of hockey moms. Stop the rink presentation aimed at children. Your marketing citizen are ruining the game. The light shows are cool, but the music is terrible. Make the old organ music mandatory. Let the Fans begin the cheers. Don't prod them on and on with pre-recorded junk. If your fans can't generate their own team cheers, then send them to a soccer game. Check out a Sabres-Leafs, Oilers-Flames, or Rangers-Islanders game. They don't need all that phony stuff to generate excitement.
One last note. If Tv fans can't see the puck it's because they have no idea what is going on in the game. It's not the visibility of the fast curious puck. Real hockey fans know where the darn puck is and ordinarily where it is going next. Let's take the hammers out and bang up the team bus. Let's get the most game back where it belongs - to the real hockey fans.
advice The Real Hockey Fans
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