New low for the nhl

I have been a huge hockey booster over the years, defending it as one of the country's four "major" sports. But I can't do it anymore. The reality is that the NHL is now, at best, a second tier sport. It's sad for me to say, since hockey in person is one of the most exciting sports to watch – the speed, skill, and physical nature of the game. And of course, the Flyers were the one consistently good team during my entire time growing up (the one team/sport in which the financial competitive advantage favored Philadelphia and who had a team owner willing to exploit it).

 

In 1995, hockey was on the verge of "making the leap" as the Sports Guy might say. A terrific Cup series between Vancouver and Rangers, with some fantasticly exciting players Bure, Leetch, Messier, etc. was getting a lot of non-hockey people interested in hockey. I remember being captivated by the "Russian Rocket" and how freakin' fast he skated up and down the ice – speed that never, ever wore Flyers' orange. And then the strike killed the momentum, insane expansion diluted the talent pool (I mean, Columbus?!?!), and the last strike killed the sport.

 

Bettman should be fired immediately. He has run the sport into the ground.

 

Here's the most recent hockey lowlight. From the June 5 AP:  "The Stanley Cup finals have brought record low ratings to NBC for a prime-time program, sports or otherwise. Ottawa's 5-3 victory over Anaheim in Game 3 Saturday night received a 1.1 national rating and a 2 share, the network said Tuesday. That matched a rerun of "The West Wing" on July 23, 2005, which also drew a 1.1 rating. Saturday's rating was down 31 percent from last year's Game 3 between Edmonton and Carolina, which had a 1.6/3. The national ratings for Monday night's Game 4 declined less sharply from last year. The Ducks' 3-2 victory received a 1.9/3, down 5 percent from the 2.0/3 for Game 4 in 2006."