Why you’re wasting your time not watching hockey
The basics of hockey and why it overrules all other sports.
Football is undoubtedly the most popular sport in North America. Its popularity is evident in the amount of games broadcast in one Sunday and the fact most Americans know a player or two. With an average of one football game per week, what can sports fans do with the rest of their week? Watch hockey. The best sport on is the one you are not watching. Hockey is the only important sport. It is a marvelous contact sport played on an ice rink with players skating back and forth using a stick to glide the puck into the opponent’s net. The sport itself is made up of six players on the ice at all times. Each player has a specific position. The goaltender’s job is to prevent the opposing team from scoring. There are two defensemen and they either control the puck and lead the team to score or they hold back the opposing team. The next three positions all work in what is called a line. Right wing takes care of the right side and the boards around the ice rink. The left wing, who does not have to be left handed, protects and plays in front of the net and takes care of the corners. The center is basically the quarterback of the team. He is counted on to win face-offs and to pass properly to another player. Any of these positions are capable of scoring goals including the goaltender.
Hockey is better because it is fast paced. Hockey involves three 20 minute portions of play called periods and two 17 minute intermissions for rest. The average NHL game, according to Livestrong, lasts 2 hours and 19 minutes. The game itself is interesting. An NHL game consists of such play as face-offs. Think of a jump ball or tip off in basketball but happening often. It also includes three-on-three overtime which is new in this current season and already a great addition to the sport. Three-on-three overtime shifts more pressure on to players because they are down two players. It also includes shootouts; one player trying to score against the goaltender all on their own in order to break a tie and win the game. Think of a penalty kick in soccer except in hockey the net is smaller so a player has better ability to score. There is also room for an extra defender if the game remains close in the final minutes of play. Coaches have the ability to send out an extra player and remove the goaltender resulting in an empty net. Yes, you can replace a goaltender and leave the opportunity for the opposing team to score. Hockey allows this.
There are grown up timeouts in hockey. Remember when you hit your sibling when you were younger and your mom found out and she made you sit in the corner to think about the decision you just made? That happens in a hockey game. When a penalty is given in hockey, a player is designated to the penalty box for an allotted amount of time. The player’s team must play without them for the time given. This gives the other team a one man advantage. This can occur with multiple penalties at times leaving teams with three players on the ice. No other sport does this. No other sport would allow one team to have an advantage over the other. Hockey on the other hand does not care. This is not similar to a foul in basketball. That is it, you broke a rule, you received a penalty, you are out of the game for a certain amount of time, it is all your fault. If the opposing team scores during the power play the player in the penalty box is allowed to return to the ice regardless if the penalty time is up. Penalty times in the NHL range from two minutes for a minor, five minutes for fighting, and a 10 minute misconduct. Hopefully that is enough time for a player to sit there and think about the decision they just made. That slash was not worth it after all, was it?
Fighting is allowed in hockey. Fights begin with players getting rid of their sticks and removing their gloves. Once those are off, there is no going back. Players engage in fights and must end them when a linesman (referee) says so. Most fights are considered done once a player hits the ice. Each player involved in a fight gets a five minute major for fighting and must stay in the penalty box for that time. The teams do not play with a missing player due to the fight. There is literally no penalty for fighting. The NHL actually lets players fight. This is rarely heard of in any other sport. Luis Suarez from the Uruguay national team was banned from soccer for four months and fined almost $100,000 for biting a player on the Italian national team during the world cup event. Hockey players will punch an opposing player in the face multiple times and will merely have to take a five minute break in a glass box. Fighting is almost unheard of in other sports including football, baseball, and basketball. Hockey on the other hand, does not mind the additional action.
Hockey is an exciting sport. It involves fast paced action, disadvantages, and fighting. It is broadcast more often than football and it is overall a strong hard hitting sport. There is no need to spend time on any other sport. Take some time out of a Wednesday afternoon and watch a hockey game. Make it a rivalry game either between the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks or the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers. Watch the goals and fights add up in the span of two hours.
