On May 25th, I posted the following on Facebook:
It is 2023 and I have not fully processed that:
1. It is May 25th and I am watching the Stanly Cup Semi-Finals
2. The two teams in vying for the Cup are Dallas and Las Vegas
Just feeling my age.
It is now June 13th, and I am watching Game 5 of the Finals. It is the Las Vegas Golden Knights vs Florida Panthers. They are playing in Las Vegas where it is 91 degrees Fahrenheit.
Hockey in mid-June. Las Vegas vs Florida in the Stanley Cup finals. The temperature is 91.
It is safe to say that the nineteen days since my Facebook post have not helped me fully process this phenomenon. My mind is still in the days when there were only six teams in the NHL: Montreal, Toronto, Boston, New York, Detroit, and Chicago. If I think back to the 1965-66 season when I lived and died Red Wing Hockey, the regular season was only 70 games and four teams made the playoffs. They had a semi-final and finals to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup. The season began on October 25, 1965 and ended on May 5, 1966. The playoffs were basically a month long from April 7th to May 5th. Montreal beat my Red Wings 4-2 in games to win a second consecutive Stanley Cup Final.
I remember the last few games of the Finals that year. The commentators were concerned about the higher ambient temperature in the arena playing a bit of havoc with the quality of ice. There was nary a word about the ice quality in tonight’s broadcast. It is clear the arena HVAC and ice refrigeration technology has advanced quite nicely in 75 years.
This season, there are 32 teams in the league. They play 82 games. 16 Teams make the playoffs. The regular season began October 7, 2022 and ended on April 14, 2023. The playoffs, which should conclude this evening, was two months long.
The first NHL expansion was in the 1967-68 season when the NHL doubled in size. They added six teams: Los Angeles, Oakland, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis. Eight teams made the playoff. I did not like the expansion, and bear in mind that I was only 14 years old. I didn’t like the change. I liked the “original six” team league and all the tradition that went with it. I clearly did not understand the business side of the sporting world. It should be noted that I was equally unhappy with baseball free agency and the merging of the NFL and AFL.
These days, as I have mentioned in other posts, I tend to watch professional sports, if I watch it all, during the playoffs. In baseball, basketball, and hockey, that is when you really see the highest quality and most spirited play. The long regular season, in my view, is just to pay the bills and salaries. I am happy with a really good one to two month season.
I knew nothing about the Las Vegas Golden Knights nor the Florida Panthers. The only player I had even heard of was Matthew Tkachuk of Florida. As good as he is, I might have confused him with his father Keith Tkachuk. It mattered not, I watched all five games of the Finals and they did not disappoint. The hockey was very good and most spirited. Vegas dominated the series but Florida fought them every inch of the way. Tonight, Vegas was on fire and jumped to a 6-1 lead, eventually winning 9-3. Mark Stone, the Vegas captain, scored a hat trick himself. His first goal was a shorthanded beauty to give Vegas a 1-0 lead. Kelly McCrimmon, the GM of Vegas, played hockey at the University of Michigan and was captain in his senior year.
Just before presenting the trophies tonight, NHL Commissioner, Gary Bettmen, spoke about what a great hockey town Las Vegas is… given the enthusiasm of the fans inside and even more outside the arena, I am inclined to agree whether I have fully processed this or not.
GREAT article Mark! Hockey has become a HUGE deal down here, but as mentioned, my heart (and mind) still cherish THE ORIGINAL SIX! Thank you very much, and keep up your good work!
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