Hockeee!

I was all set to do a long blog about my following the Bruins during the Stanley Cup Finals but it was going to read a lot like this. So instead I'll just add some undeniable facts and unique commentary.

-I won't claim to be a lifelong Bruins fan. Truth is my parents took me to one game at the old Boston Garden when I was young with my grandparents, some guy behind us kept saying he was "going to puck my wife when I get home" and we didn't go to any more Bruins games. I owned Bourque and Neely jerseys and always watched the playoffs on TV with my grandmother because...

-Other than college basketball, no sport has more contrast between pointless regular season and exciting playoffs. There is no reason to follow regular season hockey after you know your team is in the playoffs and except for a few games against the Capitals, I didn't watch much of the Bruins until April.

-In the years between my childhood and now the NHL went through two major changes. The fall of the Iron Curtain allowed for the world's best players to come to North America and play regardless of their marketability or relatability. Let's put it this way, even during this Bruins run, I don't think any children are being born at Mass. General and given the name "Zdeno". While the hockey got better, the players were not as appetizing for endorsements and didn't connect with North American hockey fans as well as North American players did.

-While I have a brother in Columbus and spent a fun weekend in Nashville and would never say those cities didn't deserve teams, the league's never-ending thirst for expansion and relocation to new markets hasn't helped its brand as much as they had hoped.

-But perhaps because the excitement of hockey is a refreshing breather from the gloom and doom that hover around football and basketball right now and baseball in June is just baseball in June, hockey is enjoying a little bit of resurgence. Ratings are up for this Stanley Cup Final over last year's and average ticket prices in Boston and Vancouver dwarf those in Dallas and Miami for the NBA Finals. Interest is at a post-lockout peak even as ESPN tries to bury its coverage in its C block on Sportscenter.

-The resurgance in interest locally in Boston I believe is about more than just front-running fans cheering for a team in a championship. This point has yet to be proven conversely but New Englanders like teams that play the New England way. We'd cheer for the Celtics but if they had an accused rapist superstar scorer and a soft Spanish center, we wouldn't love them like we love the team defensive minded, antagonistic and humble 2008 Celtics. If the Canucks were the gritty tough guys and the Bruins were doing the biting and the diving during this series, I'm not sure Boston would be as fascinated by its hockey team as it is right now. The Red Sox and Patriots will always have the loyalty of the local fanbase, but Bruins and Celtics teams have always had to develop a certain character to gain our love. This Bruins team has the necessary character.

So of course I'm enjoying this Bruins Stanley Cup run, its made the most exciting playoffs even more exciting to me and it is taking me back to good times in my childhood if not my entire life since. Go Bruins! F-- Canada!