Before I get to my main point, here is a little back story to my life-long passion for the great sport of Ice Hockey. I have a twin brother and being raised in the Northeast, we took a learn-to-skate program at about 4 years old. At the end of this class everyone asked my brother if he wanted to start playing hockey. I might be a little competitive so I also wanted to play. My great parents spent the next few years buying expensive equipment for their growing children, suffering through two freezing cold practices at a time because we were not on the same team and endured hours of driving to get us to games and practices. It stopped being fun for me after a while though I don't know if it was because I was on an all boys team or I just wanted to do other things. My brother continued to play for years and as a family we supported our local NHL team, the Hartford Whalers. In my playing days I was #16 and this being the early 80's, my favorite player on the Whalers was #16 Sylvain Turgeon. This is when some of my strong opinions against and in support of some teams and players started. With my devotion to Turgeon (who I still say is my favorite player of all time) I found myself hating Ron Hextall for slashing and breaking Turgeon's arm during a PRACTICE at a Team Canada Camp in 1987. This began my list of players I like and players I hate. After Turgeon left the Whalers, I watched him play in New Jersey, Montreal and Ottawa (and I still own an Ottawa #61 Turgeon jersey).
When the Whalers left it created a void and I no longer had a favorite team. I still watched hockey and had my list of guys I liked and guys I hated and that is who I would root for and against. In 2004, my husband and I decided to leave Connecticut and move south. We chose the Raleigh area because of the great housing market and also because they had the Hurricanes. 13 days after moving into our new home, we found our perfect seats at the RBC Center and purchased season tickets. I once again had a favorite team and I even had a history of rooting for this franchise.
On October 7th 2005, the horrible lockout was over and we had our first game of the season at the RBC Center. It was Hurricanes vs Penguins and Cam Ward gets his first NHL win after stopping Palffy, Lemieux, and Crosby in the shootout. I will never forget this game not only because of how awesome it was but because some jerk behind me asked me to sit down during this amazing shootout. How are you any kind of hockey fan if you sit down while MARIO and Sid the Kid are shooting against a rookie goaltender in the first year of the shootout in the NHL???
The Carolina Hurricanes ended the 2005-2006 season on June 19th with a Stanley Cup Championship. Does it get any better? I don't think so. That team and season will always have a special place in this sports fan's heart. Well most of that team - Doug Weight is no longer a part of that after his hit on Brandon Sutter in 2008. I understand this was deemed a legal hit but as a veteran of the league, why would you hit a rookie with his head down like that? Weight had nothing to gain with that hit and it's hits like that that are changing the NHL for the worse.
I know that the NHL has tried to crack down on some illegal hits with suspensions and fines along with them being explained by Brendan Shanahan. I don't think this is all that needs to be done. First, these men have to start having some respect for their fellow players and not take these cheap shots. As much as I hate to point out a guy who has been considered the dirtiest in the NHL, lets take a look at Matt Cooke. He has been suspended numerous times for dirty hits, elbows and reckless plays. Hearing he had vowed to change his ways after an illness with his wife, I was skeptical but the numbers say a lot. In the 2010-2011 season, Matt Cooke had 129 PIM (penalties in minutes) in 67 games with a couple of hefty suspensions in there. In this 2011-2012 season, in 45 games Matt Cooke only has 14 PIM and no suspensions. Matt Cooke's numbers say a lot of things. No matter how many times he was suspended for a cheap shot or dirty hit, it didn't matter to him until he made up his mind to play a safer game and respect other competitors. I also think it disproves the players who say the game moves too fast to stop some of the hits especially when a player has their head down and gets the first contact of the hit. I hope Matt Cooke keeps his mind on the type of game he is playing now and doesn't fall back into old habits. That being said, more guys have to stand up and play that way. Like most fans, I have a list of guys I hate seeing on the ice against my team. I still hate Brooks Orpik for the hit that broke Erik Cole's neck and after last night, dirty or not, the hit on Jeff Skinner was uncalled for. One more problem with these hits is the equipment. When you hit someone in the head with a hard shelled shoulder or elbow pad it isn't going to hurt you. Maybe going back to softer pads where you have some pain when you hit someone else would make them think twice about a dangerous hit.
This is where my thoughts, feelings and emotions about hockey contradict themselves. I told a friend during last night's Hurricanes/Penguins game that after the Skinner hit, if I was one of the players I would crash into Fleury until he was injured. I know that isn't the answer but I think it happens when guys start to feel like an "eye for an eye" is better than "two wrongs don't make a right". I admit I am a hypocrite since I stand up and root on a good fight at the game but when I read an article about the brain trauma and what some of these players go through, it isn't worth it.
The NHL players are getting bigger, stronger and faster everyday and something has to be done to make this game safer while keeping the integrity of the game we love. I for one am tired of not being able to see some of the elite players of this league because they are out with serious injuries.
Fabulous blog...well said!!
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