04/19/24
May 23, 2008
Sidney Crosby = the new Larry Bird?: "Some even suggest that having Crosby in the Cup finals could give the NHL the same enormous boost in popularity the NBA received way back in 1984, when Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers and Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics met in that league's championship series." Well then.
posted by boredom_08 to hockey at 06:43 PM - 26 comments
I know who Larry Bird is. I know who Magic Johnson is. I knew them all the way over in England. I have lived in Canada for 12 years now, and have never heard of Sidney Crosby.
posted by Drood at 08:05 PM on May 23, 2008
As a hockey fan, I'm really excited about the Cup this year. To have Crosby, Malkin, Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Malone, Franzen, etc... all on the same ice for a best of seven is great. The NHL really couldn't have asked for much more than whats happening this year. I'm not sure how it's gonna play out for TV ratings or getting more fans involved, but it absolutely needs to be a collective effort, not just something to anoint Crosby with.
posted by BoKnows at 08:13 PM on May 23, 2008
I have lived in Canada for 12 years now, and have never heard of Sidney Crosby. I'm guessing you don't own a television, read newspapers, or go near magazines. Especially for someone who visits a sporting site, I find it nigh-impossible for a Canadian of 12 years to not know of Sidney Crosby (especially the insane hype he received 3 years ago).
posted by grum@work at 10:34 PM on May 23, 2008
About the article: This is pretty much the dream NHL matchup at this time. The only way it could have been better for the NHL was if Steve Yzerman was still on the Wings. Chris Chelios can be the "elder statesman" of these finals, but he's not as famous/great as Stevie Y, plus his checkered past makes it hard to root for him. I hope it goes 7 games. I hope there are some overtimes. I hope it's high-scoring and there is no chance a goalie wins the Conn Smythe.
posted by grum@work at 10:41 PM on May 23, 2008
I hope it's high-scoring and there is no chance a goalie wins the Conn Smythe. Agreed, grum. This series will be decided by offense, not goaltending. I'm sure that both Fleury and Osgood will have great performances, but there is not many goalies that can hold off either attack. Penalties will be huge. Both powerplay units are dangerous and sometimes can score at will. I would love to see this series played on Olympic size ice.
posted by BoKnows at 10:53 PM on May 23, 2008
I have lived in Canada for 12 years now, and have never heard of Sidney Crosby. That must be some pretty big rock you live under in Canada. Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin have been the faces of the NHL ever since they entered the sport in 2004. It's very difficult to find the NHL on television considering that they're on the Versus channel and finding that channel alone is a tough quest to venture on. Now, to say that Sid the Kid can help increase the popularity of the NHL is a stretch. Crosby is a hell of a player but for hockey to be revived, the NHL needs to swallow thier pride and go back to ESPN since most everyone with a television set has that channel. Even the ECL title game pitting Manchester United vs Chelsea at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow was shown on ESPN2 and that's saying something.
posted by BornIcon at 07:48 AM on May 24, 2008
to say that Sid the Kid can help increase the popularity of the NHL is a stretch. Exactly. If you're not a hockey fan already you're not going to go to the lengths it takes to find an NHL game just to check out Sidney. Getting back on ESPN is the only way to go. As long as the NHL doesn't have a contract with ESPN they are squandering a major opportunity to use Crosby (not to mention a ton of other young talent) to market the game. This reminds me of Wayne Gretzky moving to L.A. Growing up in southern California, I knew who Gretzky was but I'd never watched a hockey game. Couple that event with some exposure to hockey via the Olympics and video games, and by the time he's in a Stanley Cup Final with the Kings, I'm searching for hockey on the radio.
posted by captaincavegirl at 12:56 PM on May 24, 2008
The whole comparison to Bird really doesn't work for me, as, like the author of the article states, Bird was made in part by his rival, Magic. Maybe if Ovechkin played on a stronger team (and in the west) it would be more alike. The Red Wings really don't have any kind of rivalry with the Pens, so much of the drama of Birds career isn't there (yet?) That being said, this finals really is shaping up to be a great one. I don't recall a gifted group of young players like this one the Pens have since the Edmonton teams of the eighties. What they lack in experience, they make up for with insane amounts of talent. And the Wings, while a seasoned team, have a hell of a lot of young talent, as well. Should be fun to watch, I just wish more of America would give it a shot. But it seems like most of America (and I guess folks like Drood in Canada) would prefer to dismiss this amazing game, claiming to be unaware of it, and be content to watch whatever the major networks shove down their throat.
posted by tahoemoj at 01:36 PM on May 24, 2008
The Red Wings really don't have any kind of rivalry with the Pens It is hard to foster any kind of rivalry when they don't even play them some seasons (says an avid hockey fan who is still angry about NHL scheduling).
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 03:00 PM on May 24, 2008
Definitely with you on that one. We might see an epic seven game series between two young loaded teams, then their fans will have a chance to see the matchup again what, once every other year? But at least Wings fans get to see the Predators four times per season!
posted by tahoemoj at 03:19 PM on May 24, 2008
Eight times if you watch all the games on television. Of course this year the division wasn't as weak, with both the Blue Jackets and the Blackhawks showing some competitiveness. Of course Patrick Kane isn't quite the same as Sidney Crosby.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 03:42 PM on May 24, 2008
NHL scheduling is absurd. Out here in Colorado we've only seen the Pens once since Crosby came into the league.
posted by drumdance at 05:28 PM on May 24, 2008
Eight times if you watch all the games on television. Fourteen, if you include the playoffs. I find it very shocking that somebody has not heard of Crosby, considering how sick I am of hearing about him. I also don't understand all this "VS is hard to find" bologna (now the NHL Network, that's another story). My remote has a button that says "guide". It took me less than a minute to find it when I switched providers.
posted by MrFrisby at 09:29 PM on May 24, 2008
The Red Wings really don't have any kind of rivalry with the Pens. NHL scheduling is absurd. Gotta disagree with you guys here. I like the separation in the two conferences. I don't like the inter-conference play in most other sports as well. Dont get me wrong, I love rivalries, I just would rather see those "rivalries" more often. So, I'll take eight vs. Chicago and see eight games of tough played, hard-nosed hockey instead of two or three odd games vs. whoever. YYM, it won't be long, maybe 1-2 years and the Hawks, Blues, and Jackets will all be good. The West Central, IMO, is shaping up to be a great division. Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Franzen, Kane, Toews, Nash, LeClaire, E. Johnson, Oshie, Perron all in the central for the years to come. And pretty much all within driving distance- StL, Det, Chi, Clb, Nash- I think the rivalries will be alive and well very soon.
posted by BoKnows at 09:59 PM on May 24, 2008
The thing is, the Red Wings could be in the Eastern Conference. For starters, four of the original six teams play there and now the Wings only see them once of twice every two years or so. Also, the Wings used to have a good rivalry with the Toronto Maple Leafs until they were moved to the Eastern Conference. Now the Wings are lucky if they even get to face the Maple Leafs during the season. Finally, it is true that there are some talented players in the Western Conference (Nash, Toews, many others, but I want to see some diversity. I want to see how my team stacks up against Crosby and Ovechkin during the course of the season, something that is impossible with the current scheduling. And I am very sick of watching the Nashville Predators.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 07:16 AM on May 25, 2008
Hey if we're voting to move the Wings to the East, I'm all for that. In fact, I could arrange for a petition.
posted by BoKnows at 10:09 AM on May 25, 2008
It would certainly ease the Wings' travel burden. West Coast trips can take a lot out of a team. The problem is, geographically the Wings are stuck. If the Wings move to the east, then why shouldn't teams like Columbus move too? And whoever replaces them will have the same travel problems. The Wings are essentially stuck in their division (not that that is a bad thing considering their success over these past many years).
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 10:53 AM on May 25, 2008
It would certainly ease the Wings' travel burden. Yeah those poor, poor Red Wings. They gotta take a first class private jets to places like Los Angeles and Edmonton and San Jose. Sniff, sniff. Then they gotta beat all those teams and earn 100+ points every season. And after all that, there is months and months of playoffs, plus there's, ugh, salary bonuses. And all those trophies. Yuck. Sorry bout that, YYM. It's really hard for me to feel any sort of sympathy for the Wings. (Partly because I'm a Blues fan.) Wing fans, Pat fans, BoSox fans - all should be under a "no complaint" period of 10 years following the last championship season. (Yes, I'm jealous.) But really, looking at the conference set up, there isn't a team in the East that could move to the West, and make more sense of being there than the Wings do. Personally, I like the central division, I really do believe that it will be a strong division in the next few years. But I kinda relate with your feelings on the Preds, not sure why, that's just not a game that I jump to watch.
posted by BoKnows at 04:37 PM on May 25, 2008
I understand. I wasn't really complaining, like you said there isn't much to complain about. There is certainly a rationale behind a move to the Eastern Conference though, however any team that switches with the Wings will be pretty much in the same boat. It is just the consequence of geography I suppose.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 04:52 PM on May 25, 2008
I also don't understand all this "VS is hard to find" bologna (now the NHL Network, that's another story). What's not to understand? Where I live (New Jersey), the Versus channel is smushed somewhere in the mid-200's and by the time I do reach somewhere near those numbers, I tend to find something more interesting to watch (most likely Family Guy). The thing is, I enjoy watching hockey but I just don't understand why the NHL would move to a station that really doesn't advertise the league like ESPN does with the NBA, NFL, Golf, Tennis or even the World Series of Poker (WSP). The NHL has two incredibly talented teams playing at this moment for the Stanley Cup, but considering that Versus isn't a household named channel like FOX, CBS, NBC or ESPN and it isn't as easy to locate (like some people would have you believe), most people just don't care enough to find it this late in the season and would rather watch what happened via highlights....on SportsCenter. At least that just my opinion.
posted by BornIcon at 09:18 AM on May 26, 2008
This discussion about the crappy schedule is moot. It has been changed, I think. Every team in the league should see every other team at least once, starting next season. Or was I hallucinating a couple months back when I read this?
posted by fabulon7 at 09:58 AM on May 26, 2008
This discussion about the crappy schedule is moot. Huh, fabulon7? I don't know if you were hallucinating then or if you are now, but my preference of NHL scheduling has not been resolved, so it's not a moot point. However the schedule is being changed, you can find a simple breakdown here. Personally, I don't like it (as stated above), and the NHL can pretend that this prevents the players from getting bored, "seeing the same guys week after week". I believe they are instituting this format to benefit ticket sales and TV ratings. I don't believe that one game each year against a non-conference foe will create any sort of rivalry, it's a gimmick. As far as VS. is concerned, BI, I agree almost exactly. It's 603 on DirecTV, and by the time I scroll through the guide to get there, I usually find 5 other things to watch. And since the channel is so far off from the bulk of regular programming (202-360), I have a hard time believing that an average Joe sports fan will come across the channel while surfing and stay to watch past the first commercial.
posted by BoKnows at 10:33 AM on May 26, 2008
As far as VS. is concerned, BI, I agree almost exactly. It's 603 on DirecTV, and by the time I scroll through the guide to get there, I usually find 5 other things to watch. And since the channel is so far off from the bulk of regular programming (202-360), I have a hard time believing that an average Joe sports fan will come across the channel while surfing and stay to watch past the first commercial. Thank you! It's good to see that I'm not the only one. I find it troubling that the NHL would stick with Versus and not consider the average fans perspective as to why the leagues TV ratings have not increased. Whatever the reason is as to why the NHL decided to move from ESPN to Versus beats the hell out of me but IMHO, it was such a very bad move. The NHL was having a difficult time bringing in the casual viewer in the 1st place so I look at this as another wise decision made by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. /bursts out in hysterical laughter with that last comment
posted by BornIcon at 11:07 AM on May 26, 2008
Thank you! It's good to see that I'm not the only one. Although there is a simple solution, in DirecTV's case. Recently, a few channels have been moved. Spike was 325, now it's 241, right next to USA and TBS, etc... And CourtTV was like 204, now it's 246. So, the channel can be moved, and it seems there is a spot right next door to ESPN(206-209), The NFL Network(212), and The NHL Network (215). Moving the channel there (210, 211, 213, 216) would, by surfing default, allow more people to see the programming available. These companies should run their ideas through us first.
posted by BoKnows at 11:27 AM on May 26, 2008
I just meant the schedule had improved -- at least each team will not only play four other teams all year, which is what it seemed like for the past few. (How many Toronto-Boston games do I need to see in a year?) As for TV coverage, I agree, it all sucks. But I live near Toronto, and I get TSN, so I'm not personally hurting for hockey coverage. I feel for you though.
posted by fabulon7 at 08:53 AM on May 27, 2008
I'd have to agree with the author of the story that yes, the Crosby revival of the NHL is possible, but at best unlikely. Unless you know where to find it, the Cup finals can be and have been difficult to find on television. If anyone can do it, Sid the Kid can, but hockey just hasn't gotten enough publicity, in my opinion. I wish it had, it's an amazing sport. I first got into it the last year it ran on ESPN (2), in 2003-04. Then the strike happened, and I've never been able to find enough of it again. Yeah. Enough ranting about nothing from me.