Hockey is one popular sport I am not well versed in. As a Vermont native, I grew up around the sport (which is hard to avoid when you border Canada), and knew many people who played on my high school’s teams and even for hockey leagues outside of town.
But to be quite frank, I have only been on ice skates three times in my life. The very few times I did go skating, it was recommended that I rent hockey skates rather than the fancy looking figure skates. And while the less fashionable choice, I was thankful to myself for listening to this advice in the end.
The extent of my hockey game watching goes back to a couple of high school games and a couple featuring the Minutemen of DI University of Massachusetts Amherst. The highest level of hockey game watching I have reached were a few minor league games in Springfield, Mass. witnessing the wonder of the Springfield Thunderbirds, who are affiliates of the St. Louis Blues.
Despite watching hockey at most levels, besides the top dogs of the National Hockey League, I am a hockey rookie. Do not ask me all the rules, I will not be able to tell you them. I may not care to follow the NHL closely, but if you asked me for my favorite team, I will tell you the Boston Bruins, which is the one time I will side with New England on any sports team.
And now, after that sickening introduction, I present to you the questions I would love to ask the CEO of the NHL, if I knew who that person was.
Question #1: Why does the season last SO LONG?
According to my research with the NHL, preseason usually starts in late September, and in 2024, the Stanley Cup playoffs went to June. Does this not feel like an abnormally long time to be playing hockey to anyone else? Perhaps I am picking the wrong fight, being a big fan of the NFL that runs its preseason in August and goes on until the Super Bowl is held in early to mid February. But if I am looking at my calendar correctly, February to August is a much bigger break than June to September. What’s the big idea, NHL?
Question #2: Why can’t I name a single hockey player?
I fear that my lack of hockey knowledge is so bad that I can not name a single NHL player. Teams I can do, but is it not concerning that I don’t have a slight idea of their best players? Is this a skill issue or is the hockey topic just not relevant enough for what I know to be my American sports culture?
Question #3: Is the reason the NHL is irrelevant to me because it is technically international?
Honestly, I did not know that teams in Canada were part of the NHL before looking up how many teams made up the NHL. Is this an additional reason why I don’t think the NHL fits into my sports culture? I have heard of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but I was unaware of their NHL status. Not sure how, but there is that. I did hear about the downfall of the US hockey team against Canada. Not really sure what everyone was expecting with that, to be honest.
And finally, Question #4: What happens if the Stanley Cup becomes broken?
From my understanding, the Stanley Cup is not a new-and-replaced trophy every year. Rather, it is a trophy that has been passed down since essentially the dawn of the NHL. I have heard reports of dents during team celebrations, but what sort of disciplinary action would be taken against the team that shatters it completely? Would they salvage the parts and retire it to the NHL archive? Or would the NHL retire the team that became its downfall? This item is priceless to the league, so let’s hope nothing of this sort ever happens.
At any rate, if someone is an expert in this field and would take on the challenge of educating me further, I would gladly sit down and listen. Unfortunately, the NFL, rather than the NHL, will always hold the bigger piece of my sports heart.