I guess what I miss the most about it is nothing being televised. If they were playing their would be a game on almost every night to check out.

 

I grew up a HUGE Caps fan (Manassas Va). Rod Langway will always be the greatest hockey player ever to me.

 

I am starting to miss it. We here in Massachusetts have been really forunate sports fans for the past year.........2003 world champ Patriots.....2003 world champ Red Sox....and the Patriots are in the super bowl once again...Boston is a baseball town FIRST a hockey town SECOND and the centics and patriots battle it out for third and forth.....I am basing this on the last twenty years not just the past 4 years. New England is a HOCKEY HOT BED!!!!!!!!!!!we are smack in the middle of the greatest division 1 NCAA division.....HOCKEY EAST of course.... with teams like Maine.....New Hampshire.....Boston University........Boston College......University of Masachusetts (I am a ulumni) and Vermont.......always 2-3 teams per year nationally ranked in the top 5 and a national champ a couple times a decade......and the AHL is loaded all over the Northeast and especially New England......Springfield Falcons (TB Lighting) Hartford Wolfpack (NY Rangers) Providence Bruins (Boston) Worcester Ice Cats (St. Louis Blues) Portland Pirates (???) Lowell Lockmosters (???) Albany River Rats (???) Plus others. But I must say that as Football season ends I am really starting to look for the games on TV again......I agree whole heartedly with the owners. With Ottawa and Buffalo in bankrupcy, something has to give....and the Boston Bruins tickets are so ever priced.......it is hard to afford a NHL game......the last game I went too the tickets were $83 a piece........so were else can the revenue come from? There is not a big TV contract like the NFL. So yes I miss but agree with the owners and will miss it until the financial part of the game mekes sence.

 

I miss it, but not as much as I thought I would have. I watch the only team worth watching, THE LEAFS!! I cheer for all the Canadian teams, unless they are playing the Leafs. Being in Brandon MB though, I could go see a Wheat Kings game if I wanted to. (Best team that shares their name with a song.......wait, only team) I hope this gets solved this week, but doubt it. As the old cliche goes, "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst."

The league needs to downside to about 24 teams, or at least move some to more "hockey friendly" areas. (That reads as Canada. Bring back my Jets! )
A shorter season too.

Just my opinion though,

Trevor

 

TSN has been broad-casting all sorts of Junior games.

 

Don't miss it at all. Saturday nights now they play a lot of old movies from 70' 80's that I haven't seen.
I see the hockey and it is not like it was when I was a kid. If they fought they got penalised. NOW. Not like now lets then draw blood and main each other. It does not teach kids sportsmanship. I watched the olympic hockey in Salt Lake last time and to me that was hockey. It really showed their talent of skating, stick handling, not this bash each other brains out.
You want that go to Boxing or Kick boxing, Karate oryour wrestling. Keep this stuff off the ice.
Besides those guys are overpaid. If anyone should get their type of pay should be the Law Enforcement, Firemen, Ambulance,Health Care people, And your military. Without them you would have total choas. They are the real life heros, but they sure don't get looked upon as worth their weight in gold.

So my view is lets go a year without hockey and let these guys take a big cut in pay for their greediness.

No I do not miss hockey. And I'm a Canuck!

 

Amen to that. I would really like to see a Canada -only league, like the CFL has for football. Then we'd have the best dang football AND hockey to watch here.

as far as the NHL goes, some suggestions for less watering down of the league;

-If half the crowd calls it "Ice hockey" (pronounced *** hackey) pull their franchise immediately
There only is ONE kind of hockey. If your crowd don't know that, you don't need a team.

-Cheerleaders at hockey games.. what is that.!!? I have nothing against beautiful athletic women. They just don't belong shaking pom poms at a hockey game. What's next? WWE wrestling between periods? Gimme a break.

-Franchise test the crowds by having driver tests on the ice at period break. Run 20-30 people around the ice on all weather tires, say 2 or three at a time. If anyone crashes into the boards, pull the franchise. Obviously Ice is foreign to these people.

-Stick the owner on skates once a year to see if he can do 10 laps around the arena. If he can't even skate, what the heck does he know about hockey? (this one would have lead to a much sooner revival of the Toronto franchise BTW)

LOL
RF tongue -in-cheek

 

Yeah i wasn't big into it, but when there is no other sports taht grab my interest on or no good teams in other sports playing, I turned to hockey. Caniac here, been since the moved down here

 

If any of you guys that are missing hockey have access to it - the NHL Network is replaying lots of classic NHL games. ESPN Classics plays some as well.

I've watched the Stanley Cups from the 70's with Canadiens, Leafs, Bruins and Flyers, a few of the Islanders cup games, and ALL of the Oiler playoff and Stanley Cup games from the '80s and early '90s. (The battle of Alberta series are AWESOME.)

They play all kinds of games, from the late 60's right up to last year's playoffs.

It's a great way to get your hockey fix, and a great way to get a feel for the game and it's history. I have to say, it's given me a new appreciation for the game, and it's brought back a lot of great childhood memories.


EDIT for Waxy:

Also, those of you that are lucky enough to have a NLL lacrosse team in your city, do yourself a favour and get out there! Great fast paced game and it's tons of fun.

They play the games on Sportsnet, TSN and Headline Sports too.

Waxy

 

I agree! Too bad we don't get any college hockey on TV until the frozen four.

.

 

I miss hockey, but there is an upside to this....not having to listen to Barry Melrose run his mouth between periods. I wish we could still get CBC at our house, I enjoy watching hockey on Tv from a Canadian's point of veiw, they know what they are talkin abt much more than the guys we have to listen to on ESPN. But anyways, I try to stay busy playing hockey so I didn't watch it a ton when they were playing, except of course for playoffs.
Has anyone heard any recent news about the lockout? I was talking to a guy at my men's league this morning, he thinks they outta play next year with minor league players. If the pros won't play, let someone who will.