schoolshrink
It would be cool to see the Blackhawks do well again. I began watching hockey regularly in 1980. I watched a little of the Lake Placid Olympics, and caught some of the buzz from the hockey team that year, but hockey was not that big of a deal then, in Spokane where I grew up. Hockey is huge there now, with the junior team winning a couple of championships and the Brett brothers running things. Anyway, at about that time we had cable T.V., and we watched sports shows (e.g., ESPN, CNN Sports) in their infancy. The USA Network used to broadcast hockey games, with Dan Kelly and Al Albert covering play by play. Gary Green was the color commentator, and he now works at TSN north of the border. That was great broadcasting. My favorite series of all time was Edmonton-Chicago in 1985. Murray Bannerman played the series of a lifetime in a losing effort. Edmonton that year was the best team I have seen. I never saw the Canadians of the late 1970's, or Bobby Orr's Bruins, and have no basis for comparison. But a goalie playing as well as Bannerman did that year can help almost any team win a championship. He just had the unfortunate task of trying to manage Gretsky, Kurri, Anderson, Messier, et. al., at their peak. It was a little bit like Stockton and Malone trying to stop Jordan and Pippen -- any other year or two and they probably would have had a ring.

Since you mentioned the Blackhawks, they got me thinking about how good it would be if they were to be competitive in the playoffs. There are fans everywhere, but hockey will never be a southern sport. It is a little tough to get enthusiastic about the championship teams in Anaheim, Dallas, Tampa Bay, and Raleigh, as we have had in the last decade. Chicago has not been competitive since they played in Chicago Stadium. Is that venue still around or did they blow it up? They also had a great organ there. The Blackhawks fans are great, but even they have grown tired of a perennial loser, as they should. Hockey would accomplish a lot if the original six, northern teams were good again. The Hawks should move back to Chicago Stadium, though, as that United Center looks pretty drab on T.V. Hockey could do a lot to improve its marketability, and looking good on television needs to be a part of that equation. But that can be tough to do when they play in such drab looking venues. Anyway, I will quit rambling. Like you, I am always up for good hockey talk.
7:49 PM Dec 11th

schoolshrink
On the opposite extreme are teams that play surprisingly well, that we might not expect. Since a Canadian team has not won the cup in fifteen years it would be easy to dismiss one of the teams north of the border, but I think Montreal looks as good as or better than their record. I watched them on Thursday against the Rangers and they dominated. They will have to stay healthy, of course, but the Habs treated that game as if it was the conference finals. I always think great teams do this: provide some indication in the season of what is to come. A season is too long for a teams' tendencies not to be exposed, which is fine as long as the team is good enough. No kidding, the Habs looked great. It will be fun to see if they can keep playing at that level.
9:22 PM Dec 9th

schoolshrink
I watched the first half of the Sharks - Oilers game on Saturday. Their home record is no longer flawless. The game was tied at one after the first period. Shots on goal: San Jose - 16, Edmonton - 1. Edmonton led 1-0 until 19:55 of the period and their defense gave up too soon. San Jose's problem was a lapse in concentration in their own zone: Devin Setogucci gave up the puck and the Oilers capitalized. For the game, the Sharks out shot the Oilers 43-17 including the 2-0 advantage Edmonton had in overtime shots. Why bring this up? I do not think championship caliber teams ever give away games. It was embarrassing that the Sharks even lost this game, but they lost composure and they gave up enough goals to cough up the game. They remind me of the 2001 Seattle Mariners. The M's played Cleveland in an August game when they led 14-0 after six innings and lost in the 9th 15-14, or maybe 16-15 ... whatever. Who cares if they eventually won 116 games; the Mariners blowing a lead like that suggested to me that this was a team with a personality flaw. Good teams eventually exploit those flaws. For the Sharks, the key will be to recognize what went wrong on Saturday night. They have played very well, but Edmonton clearly exposed a chink in the armor. That game should be studied by every other team in the league, and if the Sharks are smart they will go over it ad nauseum to be mindful of what went wrong. If they are not honest with themselves about this, they run the risk of being the Mariners: just one loss in what is otherwise a team that won 116 games. But at no time in the playoffs did they look like the best team, and the Yankees knew how to win under pressure. The Sharks will tread in uncharted territory if they should make it to the Stanley Cup finals, but they better deal with their problem with giveaways in the zone, and a goal tender who is not ready when they happen. I am reminded of how Vince Lombardi dealt with a chink in the armor after the 1962 Thanksgiving Day game against the Lions. Yes, the Lions once one, and that game was the only one that the Packers lost. Lombardi studied that game for months because he always understood that you learn more from your losses than your wins. For their sake, here's hoping the Sharks learn the same lesson.
11:02 PM Dec 8th

Trailbzr
How come the articles and columns by the other authors are dated a day in advance?
7:31 PM Dec 8th