NHL Hockey: The coolest game on earth?

[Saint Kevin]

Anyone else besides me think NHL hockey is the best sport of the big 4 here in the US?

I got to go to the Pepsi Center and see the Red Wings play the Avalanche on Thursday. For those of you that didn't see the game, you totally missed out on a great one. Also, as a side note, the Wings/Avs rivalry is back! The players were so angry with the way the game ended that I believe some sparks will truly start to fly in the 3 other games these teams play this saeson. Also, the fans started throwing beer bottles and cups on the ice because of the two highsticking penalties called against the avalanche in the last two seconds of the game (totally classless act by the fans, IMO). The next game they play is on February 14th at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. Man I wish I had a valentine who would see that with me...

Sorry for plugging the Wings and the Avs so much but they are my two favorite teams, and definitely my favorite rivalry. Is anyone else out there nuts about hockey too?

If so, who is your favorite team and player?

My favorite team would have to be the Detroit Red Wings (even though I was born and still live in CO). My favorite player would have to be Peter Forsberg (who else can play professional hockey without a spleen - that's toughness).

Also I think there should be a sports category in the forums. Who's with me?

Further proof that this is the best rivalry in sports: Goalie fight!

[kirakira]

I really don't follow hockey. I don't even know how the Blues are doing. ^^

[Saint Kevin]

I figured I'd bump this thread since there's an All-Star Game going on. It's on ABC right now if you guys want to see what hockey's all about if you didn't know. You won't see any hitting or fighting of course, but it's still awesome. Awesome.

[Saint Kevin]

I guess nobody cares...
*sigh*
So much for a sports section...

[Saint Kevin]

Wow...this thread has to be like the worst bomb ever in the history of CAA. Someone should delete it now so it can die a quick, painless death. The All-Satr game was awesome btw (like anyone cares). Joe Sakic (from my hometown Avalanche) got a hat trick and the game MVP.

Tell me people - It obviously isn't hockey you're into. What sports do you follow?

[Ashley]

*hacks into thread and changes H to F* now that's really my sport! I love watching football--either because I live in Football Country (cough Texas cough) or because a good friend of mine introduced me to it. But for the record I also like Volleyball quite a bit and played tennis for 3 years.

[Saint Kevin]

Football is probably tied with hockey in my mind for best sport...but seeing as the Avs./Wings rivalry is so fresh in my mind (having gone to the game and all), I had to post. BTW...who's your favorite team, coach, and player.
Mine would have to be: The Broncos, Tony Dungy, and Barry Sanders (retired). If I had to pick an active player, it would probably be Shannon Sharpe, 'cause he talks the greatest trash, is probably the hardest working TE in football, and is a stand-up guy that has probably the most fun playing pro football of anyone I know. And yeah, when the college stadiums seat 50,000+, you know you're in football country.

[Ashley]

Oh geez, I knew this question was coming. Hard to answer...being a native Houstonian, I have to love my Texans. At first I thought they sucked, but Carr and the boys under Capers are really coming together. They are a young, fresh team that are still wild and unpredictable. My pet peeve with them is that they have no endurance--they start off strong and then fall apart by the 3rd quarter. And plus the bull is cute.

But on the other hand, el Shatterheart here got me following the Oakland Raiders about what, 2 years ago? So I can't say I don't have feelings for the boys of black and silver. This year they bottomed out, and poor Ganon (what a hunk he is--sorry had to say that) may not return. But they have a new coach and this means new hope.

Now I don't know what I will do this year when the Texans play Oakland...probably wear a neutral color and try not to let the smack talk from up north get to me.

My favorite player? Hmm, tough to say in the NFL..maybe Jerry Rice. He's an awesome reciever. But college wise (my mom is a UT alumni so we watch all their games) Vince Young is quite the quarterback. He will be a force to be reckoned with here soon.

[Technomancer]

I only really bother with football if the Ti-Cats are doing well (they didn't this year), or if it's the Grey Cup. Personally, I much prefer hockey, but I don't follow it religiously or anything. I'd ratherthe Leafs or the Habs do well of course, and I never, ever want to see The Mighty Ducks win Lord Stanley's Cup. There's something wrong about hockey in a place that doesn't get any snow.

[Ashley]

I want to know why Houston has a hockey team

[Saint Kevin]

Tampa Bay is even worse...it's not really gonna matter anyway, the NHL will probably have to contract after they negotiate the next collective bargaining agreement. The league isn't making any money. I do hope they get a solid salary cap system in place and get fans watching hockey again. Even though we now have NHL teams in places without snow, just their presence in a city makes youth and adult hockey (both roller and ice) take off. With any luck, in about 10 years or so we will have a steady stream of fundamentally sound American hockey players in the NHL. Canadians and others have dominated the sport for far too long. Anyway, I'll stop ranting now, I just love hockey, though, and don't want to see it go away.

[Saint Kevin]

I was about to put a new thread up asking for nominees of the all-time worst bomb of a thread ever (this thread would have been my first nominee). Then you guys replied...thanks for not letting me keep talking to myself.

[Ashley]

So I take it you're going to go see Miracle at least once, huh Kev?

[Saint Kevin]

Blech...Disney. Disney is the reason I don't want to see the Mighty Ducks win a Cup. But, yeah, I'll have to see it at some point. I'll probably wait till it comes out on dvd though.

[Technomancer]

Tampa Bay is even worse...it's not really gonna matter anyway, the NHL will probably have to contract after they negotiate the next collective bargaining agreement. The league isn't making any money. I do hope they get a solid salary cap system in place and get fans watching hockey again.

Money's the big problem, and the main reason why many of our teams have left. Cities like Winnipeg, Quebec and others don't have the enough of an economic base to compete financially with the large American cities when it comes to stadium construction or player salaries. It's the same deal when it comes to expansion teams (like Hamilton). And never mind the strong hockey culture in those places, they instead move to ludicrous places like Florida, where they have to colour code the bloody puck.

[VashTheStampede]

Hey! A hockey thread! Glad to see that there are a few people who love hockey here at CAA! I follow hockey whenever I can, but not most of the time. I love playing it much more. Spectating is great from time to time, but I'd still prefer just getting down into the rink and mixing it up a bit. But yea, go hockey! Oh yea, and the movie Miracle, I'm gonna go see that as soon as I have some money for movies again, hehe (recovering from holiday spending) but yea, it's pretty cool that it's about Minnesota, haha, so yea, people around here are kinda psyched about the movie, and I've heard good things about it.

[Kisa]

Ice Hockey is awesome! I play for my school and I love it!

[Saint Kevin]

I wish I could have gotten into ice hockey, but it's way too expensive and I can't ice skate. Roller hockey is pretty fun tho, I just wish we had checking leagues.

[Kisa]

i cant sklate either, but they teach us! ^_^ (it is expensive though)

[Saint Kevin]

Are you on, like a club team, or like an NCAA women's hockey team?