Locked in after the Lockout
Hockey is back.... finally
By: Caleb Odom
The second lockout in eight years for the National Hockey League threatened to take another season due to financial disputes between the owners and the players. The honest truth was that there was no hockey and until Jan 19 2013 and for many sports fans who already regarded hockey as boxing on skates the common phrase uttered was along the lines of "who cares?"
Most sports fans were too immersed in the unpredictable world of college football and the powerfully addictive universe of the NFL who was dealing with lockout of its own when the referees decided to strike.
Hockey was like the little kid holding their breath daring fans to tell them to stop but no one seemed to notice the NHL was gone.
But that was because a large population of sports fans have not given the sport of hockey its due chance to entertain them. Some say hockey is just fighting and hard hits. They are so wrong on so many levels. Hockey is misunderstood for many reasons by casual sports fans who didn't grow up on the ice as a kid or wearing their favorite team's sweater at the rink.
I was born and raised in Alabama where hockey is truly a non factor to most because college football runs the state with a hounds tooth whip. I however have always loved and respected the beauty of watching NHL games on television and I have even had the opportunity to see my beloved Pittsburgh Penguins face the Nashville Predators in person which was an amazing experience that I will never forget.
Yes fighting in hockey is fun to watch but it is such a small part of the remarkable game that takes so much effort to play but so little effort to enjoy on a couch or even better in a seat at a game. The speed of hockey is electrifying with the slap shots smoking the net or a quick goalie's glove, the tic tack toe goals that keep your eyes bouncing from player to player as the puck is passed at unreal speeds, and even the hard body checks that players administer on each other.
Then there is what they play for... arguably the greatest prize in sports. The Stanley Cup is the ultimate prize for a sport that has so much history and character over the years. The uniqueness of hockey jerseys, the talent needed to skate backwards just as well as you can forwards, oh and the ability to take a puck to the face and keep playing the game is just a few of the things that sets hockey apart.
So now that the NHL is back why not? Why not give hockey a chance? Watch a game...you might just be shocked at how enjoyable the game is to you. Then you will care when the beautiful game is taken away from you like a stolen puck suddenly in the back of your team's net. Can you hear it? The horns have sounded, the sticks are taped, the Zamboni is ready. Hockey is back.
But that was because a large population of sports fans have not given the sport of hockey its due chance to entertain them. Some say hockey is just fighting and hard hits. They are so wrong on so many levels. Hockey is misunderstood for many reasons by casual sports fans who didn't grow up on the ice as a kid or wearing their favorite team's sweater at the rink.
I was born and raised in Alabama where hockey is truly a non factor to most because college football runs the state with a hounds tooth whip. I however have always loved and respected the beauty of watching NHL games on television and I have even had the opportunity to see my beloved Pittsburgh Penguins face the Nashville Predators in person which was an amazing experience that I will never forget.
Yes fighting in hockey is fun to watch but it is such a small part of the remarkable game that takes so much effort to play but so little effort to enjoy on a couch or even better in a seat at a game. The speed of hockey is electrifying with the slap shots smoking the net or a quick goalie's glove, the tic tack toe goals that keep your eyes bouncing from player to player as the puck is passed at unreal speeds, and even the hard body checks that players administer on each other.
Then there is what they play for... arguably the greatest prize in sports. The Stanley Cup is the ultimate prize for a sport that has so much history and character over the years. The uniqueness of hockey jerseys, the talent needed to skate backwards just as well as you can forwards, oh and the ability to take a puck to the face and keep playing the game is just a few of the things that sets hockey apart.
So now that the NHL is back why not? Why not give hockey a chance? Watch a game...you might just be shocked at how enjoyable the game is to you. Then you will care when the beautiful game is taken away from you like a stolen puck suddenly in the back of your team's net. Can you hear it? The horns have sounded, the sticks are taped, the Zamboni is ready. Hockey is back.
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