Warm up the Zamboni: Hockey's Back

By Jonathan Berohn

First of all, I should start off by saying that those of you who need an explanation about why you should care, this article really isn't for you.

Go ahead back to watching your basketball or whatever else it is you do to amuse yourself over the winter (as an aside-I simply still refuse to believe that ESPN took a pass on broadcasting hockey because poker gets better ratings; that's simply mind-boggling, and a sad commentary about the state of manhood in our society.or something).  Anyway, for the rest of us.YES!!!!! It's back.  OK, I still hate Gary Bettman and can't believe Bob Goodenow took a whole season away from us, but it's back!  And it actually looks like it will be better than ever.

Leveling the Ice

The most salient (I'm sorry, but I'm amused by using "salient" in a hockey article-I'll try to restrain myself the rest of the way) feature of the new collective bargaining agreement is the salary cap.  Combined with the new revenue sharing provisions, it suddenly means that the Rangers, Maple Leafs, Avalanche, and Red Wings won't simply out bid everyone else and buy the Stanley Cup-or at least competitiveness-every year.  OK-so the Rangers aren't such a good example, but you know what I mean.  There will be no more New York Yankees of Hockey.

Free Agency Galore

The immediate result of the new cap is a sudden glut of free agents and unprecedented player movement.  Teams that were over the new cap had to buy out old contracts to free up cap room, while those teams under the cap now had both a new mandate and an incentive to match the big spenders and build up their own previous doormat teams into instant contenders.

New Rules

Despite their seeming glacial-like embrace of change, the powers that be in hockey have finally realized that fans really don't want to see the Devils clutch and grab their way to a 2-1 victory in game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.  I know we've heard it before, but this time they actually seem to be serious about cracking down on obstruction, hooking, and interference.  This, of course, is all in an attempt to bump up scoring.  To further help out on that cause, goalie equipment is shrinking back from snowman proportions into actual sports equipment.  And to speed up the game they've essentially eliminated the red line by making 2-line passes legal, which should increase the number of breakouts and breakaways.

Shootouts!

Finally, and most radically, the NHL is finally going to get off ties.  For the first time, after a 5-minute overtime, regular season games will end in a shoot.  Yes, yes, Neanderthals like Don Cherry are surely moaning about the ruination of the game, but the fact is that shootouts are exciting, and ties aren't.  Adding them to the regular season will only help draw people to the games.  And don't worry-there will still be no shootouts in the playoffs.

The Next One

In addition to the general excitement about the return of hockey, one player whose never laced them up in the NHL is creating quite a buzz.  In case you have been living in a barn while mourning the lost season, this new phenom is Sidney Crosby.  No less an expert than Wayne Gretzky himself has predicted that Crosby has a good chance to make a run at the Great One's own records.  A bit of an overstatement at this stage of Crosby's career, perhaps, but it's unquestioned that Crosby is a special talent-and a new start that the NHL desperately needs, as evidenced by their broadcast of the draft lottery for the first time.

Instant Contenders

All these new measures the NHL has taken obviously add up to an attempt to revitalize the league.  They actually know that fans wanted improvements before the lockout, so they're determined to come back with a bang.  One thing that will help this effort is the instant return to contender status of former doormats.  One great example of this is Sidney Crosby's new team-the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Penguins not only won the Crosby lottery, but they also positioned themselves well going into the lockout by stripping down their roster.  Of course this lead to 2 straight last-place finishes, but hey-that's all in the past.

All of a sudden, the Penguins look equal to-if not better than traditional contenders like the Avalanche and Red Wings.  While Colorado had to bid a salary cap induced good-bye to all-star defenseman Adam Foote and all-world center Peter Forsberg, and Detroit had to discard important role players like Darren McCarty, the Pens have struck gold.  On defense they've added all-star offensive defenseman Sergei Gonchar.  On offense they've added all-stars Ziggy Pallfy, Mark Recchi, and John LeClaire.  If that's not enough, they also added goalie Jocelyn Thibault.  That's quite a team right there before we even get to Crosby.  And, oh yeah-they have some guy named Mario Lemiuex hanging around, too.